The Prince of Swords
by ToumaFF
Summary: Kazuto was always exceptionally talented, but limited by his own idea of kindness. Having been corrected at an early age, he excels through life without much of a purpose. Now trapped in a rather gruesome death game of his own choice, he will attempt to break though it as Kirito, the famed Prince of Swords. Kirito/Multi
1. Chapter 1 Halcyon Days

"_How selfish of you... or should I say naive. You believe that limiting yourself will make those around you happier. But by doing so, all you are doing is lying; to yourself and to everyone. Really... what's the point of living such a dull life?"_

The bell chimed rather loudly throughout the school, signalling the end of class and consequently the end of the school day.

A certain black haired boy sighed in relief as the lecture on modern day geography was halted. Really, what was the point of simply reading the textbook aloud in class, especially if you knew the class was half asleep.

Lazily beginning to pack up his things, the boy was interrupted by a greeting from behind him.

"Yo Kazu-kun."

He briefly turned his head to see a familiar brown-haired boy who was grinning wildly. Swiftly turning his attention back to packing up, he answered with a swift "No."

Nonchalantly walking up to the black haired boy and putting an arm around his shoulders, the brown-haired student was unaffected. "Come on now Kazu-kun, don't be such a drag. You had fun last time right?"

He received a glare in return from Kazuto. "If by fun, you mean absolute misery, then yes. "

"Seriously man? The girls were all over you!"

Shrugging off the arm that was draped around him, Kazuto finished packing up and began leaving for the door. "I'm not interested Ichiro, I have to pick up my sister today." He replied briefly, giving a backwards wave of goodbye.

Ichiro grinned despite having been shut down, It was not like he had expected Kazuto to go with them again. Last time, he had invited the boy to the new arcade that was opening in the mall, but along the way they had met a group of girls that were from a different school. Naturally he had used his own charm, and by throwing Kazuto's 'bishi' looks at them, he had successfully secured a 'mixer'.

Of course what had ended up happening was that the girls dragged them around doing all sorts of things before ending up at a Karaoke bar. It didn't help that almost all the girls were fussing over Kazuto in a hilarious way. Ichiro had literally 'thrown' Kazuto at some of the girls to the groups amusement.

He chuckled as he recalled the flustered looks on both Kazuto and the girls' faces. Really, the boy had to have some sort of aura that attracted girls like bees to honey. Even at their very own school he was very well known.

"Hey Ichiro!" A voice called from outside the classroom, shaking him from his thoughts.

He made his way over to greet his friends, a ragged bunch that he knew since first year.

"Hey guys." He greeted, receiving some nods. There were four of them in total including himself, and he wondered if he should have told Kazuto that they really were going to the arcade this time. There was a big event going on about the new **VRFPS** (_Virtual Reality First Person Shooter)_game that was coming out, something he was sure Kazuto would be very interested in.

"Ah, is Kirigaya-san not joining us today?" One of them asked.

"Tsk, that guy is too good for us or something right Ichiro?" Replied a rather chubby looking boy.

Ichiro chuckled lightly. "Now now Mashiro, no need to be jealous. Kazuto has to pick up his sister today Izumi-kun."

They all shared a look.

"You mean _that _sister?"

They all shivered, having met her a few times. If there was even a slight chance that you might be interrupting her 'Onii-chan time', you would be meeting the end of her sword.

"I don't understand what's so cool about Kirigaya-san anyway, almost half the girls in our school are obsessed with him in some way." The chubby boy ranted. "I mean, he looks so much like a girl! And the way he acts... its too nice."

The group shared a few nods.

"Now now, thats no way to talk about a friend..." Ichiro lectured, before widening his eyes. "Ah, I forgot you guys didn't go to the same elementary school as Kazuto and I."

He let out a short laugh at their confused expressions. "Fufufu~ look here." He said, moving towards the windows. The group joined him at the windows, where they looked in the same direction.

"You guys see Kazuto?" They nodded, seeing the black haired boy lazily strolling towards the school gate.

"Now the thing about Kazu-kun, is that he has more going on than just his 'bishi' looks. I mean he does look kind of frail doesn't he?"

"Damn right." They replied.

Chuckling, Ichiro continued his explanation. "If he was just a pretty boy, he wouldn't be that popular since he's the self made 'loner' type." It wasn't as if Kazuto tried to push those around him away, but it was more like Kazuto just seemed more comfortable alone. Never initiating conversations, he was the type that preferred to stare out the window in quiet contemplation.

Hard to approach.

"Aahh... I see." One of them said aloud. "...No I don't, how is he so popular then?"

"Like that." Ichiro gestured to where Kazuto had stopped. He was approached by a rather large group of girls that were giggling while seemingly pushing one of their members forward.

"Oowah~ That bastard, thats Nanami-chan from 2-B!" In terms of popularity, she was definitely within the top 5.

They watched in awe as she nervously stepped in front of Kazuto, pushed onward by her friends. She was blushing wildly as she stared at the ground rather than the awkwardly smiling boy in front of her. The group gasped as she handed him some sort of small package with both hands.

"That's the chocolate the girls were making today in cooking class! Damn..." One of the boys shouted in disbelief. "I can't believe this!"

"Watch closely now." Ichiro chided them.

They watched as Kazuto accepted the chocolate from her hands with a large smile. They couldn't hear what words were exchanged but the girl began blushing even harder if that was possible. Then he did the unexpected, he leaned down, lightly grasped one of her hands, and then laid a kiss on its back, causing both the surrounding onlookers and them to gasp.

She was holding both hands to her cheeks as Kazuto waved goodbye and left through the gates. Shortly after she was mobbed by her girl friends, where they quickly dragged her away to begin their interrogation.

"That's Kazu-kun for you." He gestured exasperatedly. "Even if it bothers him, he never fails to make the girls around him happy. Did you guys know he had a nickname back in our school? It was «The Prince» ."

As he turned towards his friends he sweatdropped as most of them were clutching their heads in anger, most likely cursing Kazuto mentally in a variety of violent ways.

Mashiro however, had a rather sageful looking expression on his face, as he seemed to stroke an imaginary beard with his right hand.

"I see now... His pretty boy looks, coupled with overwhelming charm. No wonder he earned that title, I'm sure of it now, Kirigaya-san is indeed the «Final Boss» of our school." He said to the bewildered looking group of friends.

"Hahaha! Final boss indeed, although I don't think any of you has the slightest chance of defeating him." Ichiro exclaimed in amusement.

They glared at him in return. "Hey! Does that mean you think you have a chance?"

He grinned widely. "Nope not even close. If this were a MMO I'm sure Kazu-kun would be the «Hero» class, while I would be a measly «Knight» class." He explained. "Of course you guys would all have to be my squires of course fufufu~" He laughed even as he was jumped by his annoyed friends.

After they had finished their rough-housing, having been kicked out by an annoyed teacher, they headed out the school towards the mall.

"Hey Ichiro." Mashiro called out, causing the group to look back at him. "«The Prince» Seems to be an awfully pretentious title, what's the story behind that anyway?"

Ichiro thought deeply before replying.

"Now _that_ is an interesting story..."

* * *

Walking towards his destination, the black-haired boy sighed deeply, thinking about the neatly wrapped chocolate he held in his hands. He didn't like what he had done to Nanami back there, it simply wasn't nice to mislead others.

But...the alternative would be even worse. If he had rejected her in front of the school then he would not only be scorned, but would also have cause Nanami pain. If he accepted the chocolate, and let her finish her confession then he would have been forced into a relationship that he was sure would not have lasted long, no offense to the cute girl; he just wasn't interested in dating at the moment.

So he had ended up in the middle ground, he accepted the chocolate, but before the girl could finish stuttering out a confession, he had thanked her for the chocolate, complimented her looks and then kissed her on the hand in a gentlemanly manner. This way, no one was hurt, and nothing would come of it except some fresh rumours.

This method of his was 100% foolproof, and was something he frequently utilized during his school days. Of course he really wondered why so many girls were attracted to him, despite not even knowing him personally. He liked to blame Ichiro, who chose to declare himself as Kazuto's 'best friend' for selling out information about him.

Despite his annoyingness however, Ichiro was one of Kazuto's few friends that understood his desire for personal time. If only he would stop spreading rumours about him, especially about his supposed 'title' in elementary school. He really didn't want that embarrassing story to be well-known.

Shaking his head from his frustrating middle school life, he contemplated the chocolate in his hands. It was surely going to melt in the heat if he did not eat it now, and would surely suffer a similar fate in his backpack. He wasn't trying to dispose of it in order to avoid a certain girl from asking him where it came from. Definitely not.

Nibbling on the chocolate confectionary, he absently noted that it was _really _good. _'Perhaps I should reconsider going out with Nanami after all_' He mused.

Coming to a stop in front of a different middle-school, he stared around awkwardly at the rush of students through the gate. He briefly wondered why Suguha wanted to go to this school so badly when she could have attended his.

Awkwardly brushing his way past the gate and past the odd stares of students wondering why a boy from another school was entering theirs, he found his answer.

A group of girls carrying a certain type of sports equipment passed him, and he shook his head in amusement.

"_Number one middle school for Kendo huh..."_

"Hey." He called out to the three girls. They stopped in surprise when they saw a boy around their age but from a different school. They also blushed as he smiled at them, all of them thinking how cute he looked; awkwardly standing there.

"Hai?" The one red-haired girl closest to him answered.

"Are you girls heading towards the Kendo club?" He asked, causing them to blink in surprise.

* * *

"Begin!"

As the shout echoed through the large practice hall, two figures immediately began to circle each other. One a short-haired girl with a 'hime' cut, and another girl with long blond tresses. They were both adorned with the standard Kendo armour and helmet, and each held their shinai in front of them with both hands.

Two veterans of the sport.

Lining the sides were numerous spectators each cheering for both of the girls, and despite the serious nature of the two participants, the overall atmosphere was rather light.

The two opponents continued to circle each other, waiting for the other to either make a move or create an opening. The shorter girl dashed forward.

The spectators gasped in surprise as she moved, closing the gap in a flash and lashing out with a fast horizontal swing. The blonde grunted in effort as she deftly met her opponent's sword with her own.

A loud -CLACK- sounded through the room.

There was a tense few seconds as they held each others' gaze, their swords locked in place; each struggling to overpower the other. The blonde one smirked, and the short-haired girl smiled in return.

The two opponents jumped back as one before continuing their fight. This time the blonde girl led the way, lashing out with an overhead swing.

-CLACK-

Once again their swords met, but this time the response was immediate. The short-haired opponent directed the sword to her left, letting it fall harmlessly away from her body and _twirled _along with her sword. Her skillfully executed maneuver was dodged barely by the blonde ducking just in time.

The fight continued with loud -CLACK- echoing throughout the room each time the two swung their swords.

It was an amazing sight for both the club members, and the frequent students who came to check out the famed club alike. The skill level in each of the combatants were clear as day to the newbies who watched on in awe.

Eventually however, one was bound to make a mistake.

The blonde fighter reeled in shock as one of their exchanges heavily favoured the shorter girl, causing her grip to slip.

In an instant her sword flew through the air and onto the floor. The crowd watched with disbelief as the short haired girl held her shinai to the blonde's head. It was so fast they couldn't even catch the movement.

The hall was silent for a few moments before somebody started clapping, causing the whole room to erupt into cheers. It was truly an amazing fight despite how short it seemed.

The two former opponents were panting, out of breath from their fierce battle.

"Uhg... Suguha-chan you were amazing as always." The blonde offered in short gasps.

The girl smiled shyly as she slowly got up and offered the other girl a hand. "Not true Ayame-chan, you were great as well."

Taking the offered hand, the girl sighed as they both stood up. "But you are my junior... how am I to show my face around here If I lose to a cute chibi like you?" She said, causing Suguha to giggle.

"It's fine sempai, you are only a year older than me anyway."

"Guh...somehow the way you say it makes me angry." She muttered.

"Hai?" Suguha tilted her head cutely.

"That!" Ayame exclaimed, pointing an accusing finger at her chest area.

"Eep!"

"I mean thats just not fair Sugu~ are first years allowed to be this big?"

Suguha covered her breasts with her hands all the while blushing up a storm. Her blonde-haired friend laughed at her cuteness. Suguha was about to yell at her friend but was interrupted by a familiar voice.

"Sugu."

Immediately her expression changed as her eyes seemingly lit up. She turned around to see Kazuto awkwardly rubbing his neck as he seemed to be gathering a lot of attention. She didn't care.

"Onii-chan!~" She yelled, running into him with a crushing hug.

Kazuto let out a grunt as she crashed into him, almost falling over before he stabilized them with his hands. Smiling at the affectionate girl in his arms, he laughed lightly as he saw her close her eyes, resting her head against his chest.

"Oi Sugu, as much as I would love to remain as your pillow... you know there's a lot of people staring." He said softly so that only she could hear. Indeed, it seemed everyone was staring at them oddly. Of course given Suguha's loud yell he was hopeful they wouldn't think too much of it.

"Ah!" She gasped, letting go of him and turning around. She gulped as she took in the looks of her friends, as they looked suspiciously at the two.

"Ah um... come Onii-chan I'll introduce you." She grabbed his hand in a familiar gesture and brought him forward to the group of girls which included her blonde-haired sempai.

Kazuto suddenly felt like he had been brought in front of a firing squad, as the girls seemingly gave off an ominous aura.

Before Suguha could do anything, a short haired brunette gave an over-exaggerated cry before seemingly pretending to faint onto Ayame's shoulders.

"To think...my pure and innocent Sugu-chan would already have a boyfriend. What a tragedy! Why Sugu?! How were you seduced by this man! Was it his sparkly black hair huh? Or maybe... " She trailed off.

Kazuto let out a yelp as she clasped his face in both hands. "Was it his deliciously cute face?!"

The two girls that were beside her shared an exasperated look before Ayame pulled the excitable girl back away from Kazuto's face.

"B-boyfriend?" The girl that remained beside Kazuto was now blushing madly, both hands raised to her cheeks.

"Calm down Yumi-chan, this is obviously Suguha-chan's brother." The blonde-haired Ayame said, causing the excitable girl to pause in her examinations of him.

"Brother?!" She shouted loudly. Thinking deeply, the girl let out a gasp of surprise before pointing at him. "He must be Kazuto!"

"Um... Hello?" The poor boy nervously greeted. Under the weight of three very judging stares he felt unnaturally naked.

"Psst, Sugu." He whispered, nudging the girl to his left who was still shaking her head. "Huh?"

"Ohh!" She gasped, turning her attention back to the present. "T-thats right this is Kazuto. My brother."

Seemingly broken out of her daze, she gestured to the leftmost girl; a blunette who was shyly looking down at the ground. "This is Chiyo-chan, but we call her Chi-chan." The girl offered a shy hello to him.

Moving on, she gestured to a grinning brunette that was bouncing on her feat. "And this is Yumiko-chan, she is kind o-"

"Hello Onii-chan~ So nice to finally meet you! You can call me Imouto-chan!" The hyperactive girl interjected. Kazuto laughed nervously.

"Uuuu..." Suguha pouted. "And lastly this is Ayame-chan, she's my sempai."

The blonde-haired girl grinned widely, offering her hand for a shake which Kazuto graciously accepted. "It's great to finally meet you in person Kazuto-san, Sugu-chan has told us _all_ about you."

"Ah, nice to meet you too Ayame-san, I actually saw your duel with Sugu earlier, you were both amazing!" He exclaimed, causing the two aforementioned girls to blush.

"Hehe~ It was nothing!" She replied, rubbing her neck bashfully. "Say, are you interested in Kendo at all? I mean especially knowing Sugu-chan's obsessiveness over it."

He blinked in surprise before answering. "Ah maybe just a little."

The three girls all stared at a wide-eyed Suguha who seemed to be struggling to say something.

"Sugu?"

The girl glared at Kazuto slightly before sighing. "My Onii-chan is just too shy." She muttered, causing the others to look at her in confusion.

"Anyway." She coughed. "I've managed to secure Onii-chan for today!" She exclaimed.

The girls gasped in surprise.

"You don't mean?"

"Fufufu~"

"Really?"

She smugly grinned in triumph. "Yep! He's going to take us shopping!"

Kazuto groaned into his hands as the girls erupted into cheers, he knew he shouldn't have promised Suguha that he would make up for missing one of her local kendo matches. You really couldn't say no to that pouty face of hers. He just hoped his wallet would survive the trip.

"What's going on here!"

A rather sharp feminine voice interrupted their celebration. The girls all gasped in surprised and seemingly straightened themselves up.

The owner of the voice was a rather strict looking raven-haired beauty. She was a tall figure that stood imposingly over the rest of the middle-schoolers. At her side she held a shinai and Kazuto could immediately tell that she was someone who was overly familiar with the weapon.

"K-karen-sempai." Suguha stuttered out.

"Suguha. Ayame. What are you two doing giggling over here when it's still practice time?" She scolded. "And really what have I told you two about bringing your friends over all the time?"

The girls all looked down bashfully at their feet as the overbearing girl continued her lecture. Kazuto almost wanted to whistle at her enormous aura, the kind that screamed 'listen to me or be killed', that he had been sure only his mother knew. That thought quickly escaped his head as she turned her burning eyes on him.

"You!" She pointed at him. "There's no flirting in my dojo, if you want to pick up girls do it somewhere else!"

Kazuto spluttered a denial, but before he could verbalize it, Suguha cut in.

"Ano... Karen-sempai, we have permission from Sensei to leave early today."

The imposing figure turned back to face Suguha, an action which caused the smaller girl to shrink in on herself.

"And?" The taller girl scoffed. "I am the team captain you know, I would think you would ask for my permission too! And Suguha, need I remind you that the regional qualifiers are just weeks away? You can't afford to be slacking off if you want to keep your spot on the team."

Suguha was visibly crestfallen at her words, her face now on the verge of tears. She turned her dangerously pitiful face towards him, and he sighed.

'_Hah...really Sugu, don't look at me like that!" _He screamed inside his head, heart already clenching due to her pitiful look.

"Hey." He called out, gathering the attention of the girls and curious spectators alike. "There's no need to be so harsh alright?"

Karen glared harshly at him. "Stay out of this, kid, this is club business."

He sighed at her words. "Then I will make it my business."

"What did you say?"

Loud whispers filled the room as everyone looked on at the building confrontation between the unstoppable force that they knew was Karen Yoshida, and this newcomer who was obviously in over his head.

"This is all about practice right? Personally I think they already practiced enough... but if you don't think so, then I guess I'll have to show you in their place." He said blandly.

The raven-haired girl gritted her teeth. "You...impudent little... fine! Lets go, get on the mat!"

With a last glare, she turned towards the changing rooms in order to get into her equipment, the crowd parted hastily out of her way.

"Kazuto-san!" Ayame shouted. "Oh no. Oh no, you need to apologize!"

He gave her a curious glance. "Why?"

"It's not like I don't appreciate you standing up for us but..." She hesitated. "Karen-dono is on a whole different level than us."

She looked towards her friends for help. "Right guys?"

Suguha was now looking at Kazuto with stars gleaming in her eyes. "Onii-chan... Senpai...hehehe..."

"Onii-chan fighto~" Yumiko yelled from the sidelines, the crowd already clearing off the mat.

Even the timid Chiyo was looking blushingly at Kazuto.

Ayame sweat dropped. _'I tried...'_

A short while later, amidst the muttering of the crowd, the ominous figure of Karen dressed fully for battle appeared.

She stomped her way over to a seemingly oblivious Kazuto who was testing the weight of the shinai in his hand.

"Not even wearing armour?" She yelled. "Are you trying to waste my time here brat?!"

He finished swinging his shinai around, and turned to face her. "It's okay I won't need it."

It seemed to be the wrong thing to say as Karen literally growled inside of her facemask. "Your funeral."

At her gesture they moved to the center of the mat, where a reluctant Ayame stood as referee.

"Um, rules?" She asked the two combatants; one looking calm and the other literally glowing with rage.

"Informal, first to yield or touch the outside of the mat." Was the answer from the raven-haired beauty.

Ayame looked startled at the rather abnormal set of rules. Karen was always a stickler for rules, even practicing under formal tournament rules each spar.

"Do you agree to these rules Kazuto-san?" She asked him, hoping he would decline.

She winced when he nodded his head. This was going to hurt... and since it would be an informal battle where one side wasn't wearing any equipment. And she knew from experience that taking a point, which meant a direct hit, from Karen was next to impossible.

Reluctantly she raised her arms high in the air and swiftly brought it down.

"Begin!"

In an instant, the imposing figure of Karen dashed towards him, an overhead strike that would undoubtedly hurt if it connected.

-CLACK-

Her strike was held back by her opponents own shinai, but what surprised her however was the fact that he was holding it back with just one hand.

'_So he does know how to fight...'_

In a formal match they would inevitably have to reset, but here...She pressed her advantage, her angle allowed much better leverage as the boy grunted in exertion trying to hold back the shinai upwards.

Giving up the struggle he jumped backwards, effectively breaking off their struggle. She glared as he deftly raised his sword again in only one hand. _'This bastard...'_

With a loud cry she began her assault, swinging from every direction, she hacked at him viciously. The crowd was awed at the speed of her strikes, making the previous showdown seem slow in comparison.

What was even more incredible however was that her opponent managed to redirect or block every blow each time they came. His efforts however were steadily declining as he was slowly pushed back, coming dangerously close to being disqualified.

"HYAH!" The girl yelled, swinging with all her might in a diagonal swing hoping he would step back once more.

-CLACK-

'_What!'_

Everyone looked in surprise as his shinai blocked her strike solidly, as he used both his hands to meet her strike for the first time. He smiled in satisfaction, which annoyed her to no end.

He pressed forward, and the entire battle changed. Using a series of hazardous one-handed swings he steadily but surely gained back his lost ground. While only using one hand did little to push her back in terms of strength, it was the speed in which he swung that astounded her. By the time she recovered from deflecting one swing another would already be dangerously close.

'_Just who is this guy?!' _She yelled in her head.

The world blurred and it was just him and her, she drowned out all the distractions around her in order to focus on blocking the relentless assault. It was working... her considerable talent allowed her to steadily recover precious ground, but just as she tried to push onto the offensive something took her by surprise.

His left hand, which remained constantly unmoving at his side the whole battle seemingly lunged forward, making her recoil in shock. A jab hit her lightly on the throat portion of her headgear.

"Tsuki." (Throat) He whispered.

Her eyes widened in shock, lashing out with her shinai in reflex caused Kazuto to pull back from his offensive.

'_That was- what is he playing at?'' _She thought. _'This is informal so he doesn't need to declare his strikes, if he really wanted to use his fists then he could...'_

She narrowed her eyes at the grinning boy, suddenly feeling cold at her realization. The boy in front of her used Nito-Kendo (Two Sword Kendo). And suddenly she understood why his stance had seemed awkward and open at the beginning.

'_If he had a second shinai...'_

Shaking her head and trying to steel her nerves back to normal, she retook her stance and charged. This time she swung directly at the shinai in his hand.

'_If I aim for his hand.' _She thought desperately. Even an experienced Kendo practitioner would struggle not to drop his shinai.

It happened in a blink of an eye, one moment the sword was in his right hand, and the next...her fast strike hit nothing but air, causing her to widen her eyes in shock.

"Men." (Head)

The voice was accompanied by a light tap on the top of her helmet. She followed the sword to its owner and found it in a left handed strike from above.

The entire room froze as they took in the shocking scene.

Kazuto looked at the girl that was shaking with a concerned expression. Maybe he had gone too far?

"I lost." She stated.

She took a deep breath before facing Kazuto and looking him in the eye. "I yield."

She looked at the stunned boy in amusement before shaking her head, and heading for the exit. Ignoring the sudden but expected amazement from the crowd as they swarmed the unexpected victor.

She couldn't stop her shaking hands as she neared the exit. What she had felt in that short battle was simply shattering. Especially for a girl who had been raised in Kendo ever since she could walk, having been brought up by her parents; who were both rather famous Kendo practitioners. But the skill difference between her and her opponent was as if she had just stepped onto the stage at the internationals.

"Karen."

Startled at the sound of her name, she abruptly turned her head towards the source.

"Ah Sensei!" She shouted in surprise.

He smiled at her lightly. "I saw that fight just now with that boy... informal huh?"

"Sorry..." She muttered in embarrassment. "but I was completely outclassed anyhow."

"Heh, it's to be expected." He said causing the girl to look up in surprise.

"What do you mean?" She asked. "Do you know who he is?"

The teacher gave her a knowing grin before answering. "That boy is Suguha's brother... Kirigaya Kazuto."

"You mean?!" She gasped.

"Yes."

"No wonder..." She suddenly straightened up and looked back at the boy who was now being teased alongside his sister. A rather effeminate looking boy, that you would never believe to be once considered the most talented prodigy ever to hit the Kendo scene.

"I never stood a chance."

* * *

"Kazuto-kun, how do I look?"

"Onii-chan look!"

"Ahh, stop calling Onii-chan that!"

"K-Kirigaya-san, how is this?"

An awkward looking Kazuto groaned deeply into his hands as he was assailed by the voices of four rather bubbly schoolgirls. Of course any regular teenager would be happy to have been asked for his opinion on some rather skimpy outfits. Not Kazuto though, since he had been doing this for the last two hours. Two hours straight of clothes shopping, sitting by the changing rooms, being giggled at by girls, while holding a closet-full of clothes in his arms. And the worst thing out of all of this you might ask? He was paying for all of this.

A boy could only take so much.

"Um, you four look very cute." He said aloud, cutting into their budding arguments. The four equal blushes he received was also rather cute in his opinion. "Hey, how about we take a break, get something to eat?"

The four girls blinked in unison, making him shift nervously.

"Okay." They said in unison, causing him to sigh in relief.

Grabbing all of their new clothing he made his way to the giggling sale-girls at the register who had likely been gossiping about him the whole time. Putting the rather enormous pile of clothes onto the checkout desk, he absently pulled out his rather empty looking wallet. No doubt he would have to use his debit card, dipping into his steadily declining money he had saved from previous tournament winnings.

Shaking his head as the cashier finished ringing up the total, he reluctantly handed his card to the exuberant girl. He reminded himself desperately to never tell Suguha that he will 'do anything' as a way to console her.

Grabbing the four rather large bags of clothing, he let the girls lead the way to the food court. The four girls were happily engrossed in conversation and he smiled wryly at Suguha's blushing face. Absently hoping that they weren't teasing her about him, he was content to see that Suguha was enjoying herself. It had actually been awhile since he had actually hung out with his little sister, mostly due to her club activities.

Arriving at the rather crowded food court, the group quickly found a table and sat down, Kazuto rather happily since he could now rest.

"Hey Kazuto-kun, what would you like to eat?"

He looked up tiredly at Ayame, the blonde girl looking back at him with a smile.

"Uhm, I would like some iced tea if anything... maybe a burger." He replied absently.

The girl beamed at him. "Okay! You stay right here we'll be right back." Before the other girls could react she grabbed them and headed to one of the food stalls.

Happily resting his head on the table, Kazuto almost fell asleep, but a rather annoying voice interrupted his rest.

"Kazu-kun?"

He blearily looked up to see the smiling face of Ichiro and his three friends. Already a feeling of foreboding settled in his gut.

"You have the wrong person." He said sharply, before resting his head back onto the table.

"Heh, its definitely Kazuto-kun..." The voice continued, ignoring his dismissal. "Woah, guys. Check out all these shopping bags..."

He sighed deeply into his arms, and prayed that these guys wouldn't stay for long.

"Mmm, these brands are all from popular shops catering to girls..." The group of guys gasped. "Kazu-kun, mind telling us something?"

"Look, I'm just here with my sister alright?" Seeing no other way of dismissing these guys, Kazuto decided to deal with them.

Ichiro smirked. "Nice try Kazuto-kun, even I know Suguha-chan wouldn't buy this much clothing."

He glared at him. "They're gifts."

Already he could see the group of friends giving him a suspicious look, and he shuddered to think what would happen when the girls came back.

"What are you guys doing here anyways, picking up girls at the mall is kind of low even for you."

If he was hurt by the jab, Ichiro didn't show it, merely smiling at Kazuto's question. "If you must ask we are actually here for this." Ichiro handed Kazuto a bright looking pamphlet.

It had the words 'Gun Battle Arena Launch Tournament' written boldly on the title, and Kazuto looked through it briefly in recognition. GBA was a rather new VRFPS that was supposed to launch this week. Its premise was that of a very realistic shooting game, that was supposed to surpass all other VRFPS games that were currently out, most of which were rather lackluster in gameplay.

The creators of the game were planning on showcasing the launch by having several tournaments spread throughout popular malls around Japan. Interesting enough anyone could sign up for the tournaments and have a chance of winning huge prizes.

Kazuto was rather surprised that the group was actually planning on attending something interesting.

"Surprised Kazuto?" Ichiro smirked at him.

He looked up at him blandly. "Yes."

Laughing at his reply Ichiro gestured to the group behind him. "Anyways we are going to go watch the event at the big screen, one of my good friends is actually participating in it. You and Suguha-chan can join us if you want to."

Waving goodbye at the group of friends and acquaintances that he knew, Kazuto went back to browsing the pamphlet. It was actually rather interesting since gaming was something that consumed a great majority of his time. The new area of Virtual Reality gaming was something very interesting. Although since it was relatively new technology, not many could afford one of the rather expensive pods required to play it. As such, not many game creators were interested in the new platform. There were rumours however of a rather prodigious developer that was coming out with both a new portable platform and a brand new MMO.

Having kept up with the latest news and rumours, Kazuto was actually excited to see where this new platform would go. The sheer amount of data that would be required for a VRMMO was simply astounding, and many skeptics were already criticizing the mere idea of such a game.

"Onii-chan." A voice brought him out of his musings. Seeing the girls arriving with trays of food he called out a small greeting.

As they sat back down, Kazuto happily sipped at his iced tea. He had been feeling rather hungry the whole while.

"Neh, what's that in your hand Kazuto-kun?" Ayame asked, having sat next to him. The girl was leaning rather closely over his shoulders to look at the pamphlet.

"Some event going on at the mall." He replied vaguely, trying to avoid looking at the girl that was almost rubbing against him. Seeing the girls look at him in question he elaborated. "Its the launch of a new VRFPS... a virtual reality shooting game."

The girls all nodded in acceptance, not really understanding the idea, but understood that it was rather popular amongst guys.

"Did you want to go see that Onii-chan?" Suguha asked him, knowing that he was interested in those things. "We actually have time, unless you want to continue shopping?"

He sweated at her question. "Uhm... If you girls don't mind I suppose we could take a look."

Receiving a collection of agreements from the girls he sighed in relief. He was in the clear for today if he played his cards right.

"Hey, what's this about the prizes Kazuto-kun?" Ayame asked from beside him, looking at the back of the pamphlet.

"Hmm?" Kazuto looked at the section in question and blinked rapidly in surprise. The winner of the tournament would not only receive a rather large sum of money, but will also be given an exclusive invite to beta test the new VRMMO game «Sword Art Online». SAO was something that was always considered just a rumour, yet this pamphlet...

"We're going."

* * *

Where the tournament was being held, a tremendous number of people had shown up, surrounding the centre of the mall. The location itself was a circular clearing that was in the middle of the multi-story mall. During the christmas holidays, a huge tree would be erected in the center, but for this event they had settled for four extremely large screens that would be covering the game being showcased.

Several TV crews had already shown up to cover the exciting event and already the crowd was growing restless. At the base of the screens was a platform where a variety of staff members could be seen doing some last minute preparations. Surrounding the platform itself were rows and rows of Virtual Pods, where the players that would be playing in the tournament, gathered around. Beyond the pods was where the audience gathered at the edge of the ribboned separators.

Kazuto led the girls steadily through the crowd, searching for a particular person. The girls were awed at the amount of people that had shown up for the event. Suguha who was tired of being bumped into by the crowd grabbed onto Kazuto's arms. Ayame similarly took his other arm, making Kazuto shift awkwardly amongst the crowd. Since the majority of the crowd were men, they stared at him in jealousy, as they drew a large amount of attention.

"How bold..." Whispered Yumiko in the back. The petite Chiyo next to her nodded in agreement.

Seeing the familiar mop of messy hair he knew to be his friend, Kazuto called out a greeting. "Yo Ichiro."

The boy turned around in surprise, along with the rest of his group. They were all in shock to see that Kazuto had several girls with him, even two that were clinging to his arms. It didn't matter that one was his sister, they were all cute in their own way.

"Woah Kazuto-kun... I didn't expect this... not in a million years." Ichiro said, whistling aloud as he appraised the girls silently. The group of guys around him all glared in unison.

Suguha glared at him from her place beside Kazuto. "It's that baka from before." She muttered aloud, causing Ichiro to chuckle. "Yo Imouto-san."

Kazuto was about to ask something when he was interrupted by a cry.

"HOW!?" Suddenly a rather chubby boy latched onto the front of his shirt, causing Kazuto to jerk in surprise. "How do you do it Kazuto-sama!? Teach me!" The boy sobbed. Kazuto looked around awkwardly as the boy sobbed into his chest comically.

Absently pushing the boy he somewhat recognized as a classmate of his away from him, all the while the crowd looked on in confusion at the crying boy. Kazuto turned back to his amused looking friend.

"Anyways... Do you remember that one favour you owe me?" He asked.

Ichiro blinked slowly. "You mean..._that _favour?"

"Yes."

The boy suddenly straightened his posture, and turned to look seriously at Kazuto. "What is it?"

"Get me into the tournament." Kazuto stated simply, causing everyone around him to gasp in surprise.

* * *

"I hate you Ichiro..." Muttered a voice beside the boy.

Ichiro shrugged and patted his friend on his back. "It was necessary. Besides, it wasn't like you were going to win anyhow."

"Kuhh... thats not the point!" Seethed the boy. "I wanted to impress some girls here you know, like those ones!" He pointed to a group of four girls that were talking to an effeminate looking guy.

"Fufufu~ You know they all came with that boy there, the very one that's replacing you in this tournament."

"WHAT?!" He exclaimed. "Grr...what the hell's so special about that bastard. Does he even know how to play?" He asked.

Ichiro thought on the question before answering. "Nope, it's his first time playing a VRFPS."

His friend beside him groaned deeply into his hands wishing deeply that he didn't owe his friend so much. "I hate you Ichiro."

"Hehe. Don't worry though, if it's Kazuto-kun, I'm sure he will show us something good.

* * *

The world faded around him and reformed in a scattering array of lights. As far as he could see was an endless field of blue. Standing atop a platform of translucent hexagons, this was the standard welcome area for the VR system that Kazuto was familiar with due to his frequent outings at the arcades.

"Greetings."

A rather robotic voice greeted him in monotone. Turning his head toward the voice he was greeted by a humorous looking robot NPC. It was a miniaturised version of a steampunk robot, even having steam puffing out of several vents.

"Welcome to the pre-launch of «Gun Battle Arena», Entrant number thirty-two, please state your preferred username."

"Kirito." Kazuto answered immediately, that had been his online username ever since he was a little boy.

"Username Kirito received, confirm?"

"Yes."

A short ding of confirmation sounded throughout the area and Kazuto noticed that he now had access to a HUD. On the top left of his vision he could see the name 'Kirito' displayed along with his health bar. To the bottom right was where he guessed his weapon information would be displayed, was a static image of a pistol. He was actually rather disappointed at how the game presented itself, thinking that it was supposed to be a more 'realistic' game.

"Beginning weapon selection process. Please wait."

At the end of the robotic sentence, the area around him blurred and Kazuto immediately found himself in some sort of modernized barracks. A rumbling sound was heard and the walls opened up to reveal a huge array of weaponry.

"Please select a primary weapon and a secondary weapon. "

Looking around idly, Kazuto immediately dismissed the rather heavy selection of mini-guns and sniper rifles. Moving toward the more light-oriented weaponry, he hovered his hand over a pistol he was rather familiar with. Touching the «Five Seven» handgun, he was greeted with a confirmation screen, and after tapping the 'Yes' button he felt the handgun transfer itself into a holster on his waist. Happy with his selection he moved towards the robotic helper.

"No primary weapon selected. Please select a primary weapon."

The monotone reply caused Kazuto to frown, he just wasn't comfortable with assault rifles or sub-machine guns, preferring the maneuverability that a handgun provided. From his previous experiences in VRFPS; which was not that much considering he disliked the genre - the more you moved the more effective you were.

Suddenly coming up with an idea, Kazuto moved back towards the wall of pistols and reached for another gun. As soon as his hands touched the black pistol, «Glock 17», a different confirmation screen popped up.

«Secondary weapon selected, place in primary slot?»

Smiling as he hit the 'Yes' button, Kazuto was now rather confident of his success in this tournament. Immediately heading towards the robot npc, and confirming his selections he was immediately teleported once again.

This time the area was more urban and less futuristic. Around him was filled with rust and old machinery. It seemed the setting of the match was near some industrial graveyard, and as he stood in place with the transparent cylindrical barrier that kept him in place - Kazuto idly hoped the girls weren't too bored.

«10 minutes until start of match»

* * *

Back outside the crowd was growing even more restless than before, but finally relaxed as the lights dimmed and the large screens blinked to life. There was loud cheering as the cameras centered on the main stage and one of the professional looking announcers strode into view.

"Good evening everyone!" He yelled, to the cheer of the crowd. "And welcome to the launch of «Gun Battle Arena»!"

Pausing to bask in the loud applause, he finally gestured to the large screens behind him. "Today we will be covering a rather exciting deathmatch between 32 players that will be all be captured and broadcasted live! The makers of GBA have created a rather inventive AI system that will cover all the camera work for us." The large screens in front of the crowd suddenly featured ingame footage which the crowd cheered for. The camera seemed to be slowly shifting around the starting locations of the players and sometimes even on the players themselves. "Now I will be going over the rules of the game. This mode is fairly simple, it is called Arena Deathmatch. Players will have three lives each and to win, you simply have to have the most points by the end of the time limit, or when no one else has any lives left. Points will be given for kills, but you will also receive points for good assists. Players with no lives will be reduced to being a spectator, and those who have lives remaining at the end will receive a bonus of points."

The camera suddenly centered on a particular black haired boy, and the crowd gasped as he had seemingly taken off the standard issued helmet that was on every avatar.

"What's this? It seems we have a player that has taken off his helmet... our information panel has suggested that it is allowed... but the player will have to deal with having zero information in his vision. Wow, I wonder what kind of player this 'Kirito' is." Indeed, as the camera centered on the players face, many in audience were surprised, none more so than the girls he had come with. His face was calm and he had his eyes closed in silent contemplation.

Suguha deeply hoped this wouldn't turn into a huge thing, Kazuto already had enough admirers in her opinion.

"Now without further ado, let the battle commence!"

* * *

Immediately the cylindrical energy barrier shattered around him, and Kazuto moved into action. Without his helmet on, he could actually hear a lot clearer and everything felt a bit more realistic to his senses. Already an idea formulated in his head, and he moved steadily towards the centre of the map.

The idea was rather simple in his mind. Every player in this game would have the standard equipment set which allowed them to pinpoint where gunfire was located. Therefore if Kazuto fired a round directly in the air at the centre of the map, surely the more aggressive players would be drawn like moths to a flame. In which case, the more passive players with the sniper rifles would also attempt to control the area in order to gather some easy points. At that point, a player like Kazuto with only pistols as his weapons would surely be at a disadvantage.

He wasn't a normal player however.

To the centre of the map was a large abandoned warehouse with multiple rows and sections of industrial machinery. Propane tanks, carts, barrels of chemicals, and large crates of wares made for a rather messy fighting area.

Rushing towards the middle of the warehouse and into heavy cover from the long ranged enemies, Kazuto fired two shots into the air... then waited.

* * *

"And what's this now? Our first gunshots of the game... ah coming from our helmet-less player! I wonder what his plans are as now that he has attracted everyone's attention." The camera hovered around the abandoned warehouse before zooming out, causing the crowd to murmur in excitement as several outlines of players could be seen steadily making their way towards the area.

* * *

In a densely packed area such as this, their radar system would prove to be useless, sure they could detect which direction the gunshots came from, but could they ever get a direct shot without moving directly to the enemy? That was Kazuto's reasoning as he stood calmly behind a large crate.

When the enemies came, it would be a matter of reflexes, who shot first and where. As he had already deduced, everyone in this game had the exact same body type, therefore everyone had the same height. A headshot is a 'for sure' kill no matter what the weapon, and as long as he aimed directly at the head area, there was no way he could miss.

All it came down to in the end was, who had the better reflexes... and Kazuto had never lost in that regard.

The first enemy stepped into view, bearing a large assault rifle that he rapidly searched the surrounding area with. His eyes met Kazuto's, and before he could even react a loud bang echoed through the warehouse.

«Kill Confirmed +1 Points»

He smirked.

* * *

The crowd all stood in awe for a small moment before erupting in momentous cheering, the performance they witnessed was incredible even for those who had never seen such a thing before.

«Winner Kirito!»

With an incredible score of [74 - 1] Kazuto had decimated his way to the top, with his only death resulting from running out of ammo and then being gunned down by multiple enemies who had banded together in order to kill him.

Stepping out of his pod, he was hastily grabbed and shoved onto the stage to his embarrassment as he realized just how many people were cheering for him. Ignoring the rather bubbly commentators and the cheering crowds, especially the rowdy crowd he knew from school, Kazuto accepted his prize.

The large check presented to him was ignored in favour of the smaller voucher that was also handed to him.

An express invitation to the beta test of «Sword Art Online» by the creator of the game himself.

Kazuto Kirigaya smiled in happiness, he had a feeling that things would be much more interesting from now on.

* * *

**A/N: Hello everyone and thanks for reading. **

**This story will be about a Kirito who doesn't hold himself back because of his desire to remain unknown or to make others less uncomfortable. This is a Kirito who accepts that he is unnaturally talented and doesn't have motivation issues. The reason Kirito quit Kendo in canon was because he didn't like his overbearing grandfather and the sport in general, not because he was bad at it. **

**I am of the opinion that Kirito is one of those unnaturally talented people that are only motivated by things they find interesting. The reason why Kirito continued kendo will be expanded upon later.**

**Moving onward to the next chapter and onto the SAO storyline, I will be be back to referring Kazuto as Kirito. **

**And don't worry about the OC's as they won't be making much appearances after this introductory chapter.**

**Feel free to leave a review.**

**Next Chapter: Ray of Light**

**11/18/2012: Beta'd by n0mster.**


	2. Chapter 2 Ray of Light

_**[Players, welcome to my world.]**_

_I didn't understand it at first, what kind of greeting was that for a MMO?_

_**[**__**My name is Kayaba Akihiko. Right now, I am the only person who can control this world.]**_

_Something about his statement had rung alarm bells in my head, but I had tried to ignore the gnawing feeling in my heart._

_**[I think that most of you have discovered the fact that the [Log Out] button has disappeared from the main menu. This is not a bug; it is a feature of «Sword Art Online»]**_

_I felt a cold feeling wash over me, the sinking feeling deep in my stomach as my worst fears were realized. While the other players around me continued to listen with rising confusion, I already knew what was going on. For Kayaba was someone I felt I knew. _

_**[Until you get to the top of this castle, you will not be able to log out]**_

_A genius had created this world. That was my thought when I had played the beta, the amount of detail was simply staggering. But yet I wondered, what was the purpose of creating such an intricate world by himself? What did he truly want from the players of SAO? He was already rich enough of course from the Nerve Gear alone, but what had caught my eye was the articles they had done on him._

_**[...also, the disruption or dismantling of the Nerve Gear from the outside is strictly forbidden. If these things are attempted...]**_

_Kayaba Akihiko had spent the past 10 years of his life researching VR and creating SAO. Along the way, he spoke fervently of something called the «SEED», something he said held unlimited potential. Yet his very few interviews stuck in my mind._

_**[...the signal sensors in your Nerve Gear will emit a strong electromagnetic pulse, destroying your brain and stopping all of your basic functions]**_

_Someone like that who worked his entire life into one thing would never be satisfied with simply releasing SAO. That was my first impression upon playing the game, wondering what a person who didn't even hold a passion for MMOs wanted from it. _

_The mirror item that showed up to reveal everyones true appearances was met with scared confusion, as if just realising that maybe this wasn't a joke._

_**[You will all most probably be wondering, 'Why?' Why am I - the creator of both the Nerve Gear and SAO, Kayaba Akihiko- doing something like this? Is this a sort of terrorist attack? Is he doing this to ransom us?]**_

_Of course not, money was never your objective._

_**[None of these is the reason I am doing this. Not only that, but now for me, there is no longer a reason or a purpose in doing this. The reason is because... this situation itself was my purpose in doing this. To create and watch this world is the only reason I have created the Nerve Gear and SAO. And now, everything has been realized]**_

_God complex? Maybe. But I felt like he truly believed in something. Like by doing this he would have unlocked something unreachable. _

_I never wanted to destroy something more in my entire life. Glaring up at the figure that deemed itself a creator, I wanted to shatter his goals more than anything._

_**[...Now, I have finished the official tutorial for «Sword Art Online». Players- I wish you luck.]**_

_A myriad of emotions rose up within me. _

_Ignoring the screams and shouts of the confused players, and gripping my hands hard enough to draw blood - had it been the real world - I steadily walked away from the mass of confused prisoners. _

_Stepping out of the city, there was really only one thing I wanted to say._

"_I'm so sorry Suguha..."_

* * *

The night was eerily silent, devoid of the usual signs of life that a forest would usually have. Even for a virtual forest, the aura that the area seemed to radiate was an ominous one. Situated quite far from the starting city, the «Lost Forest» was considered the hardest zone within the first level of the SAO. Populated mostly with wolf-type monsters, the average player would not want to be caught alone in such an area.

In the death game known as «Sword Art Online», where the majority of the players still huddled near the starting city, rarely venturing beyond the beginner areas. It was indeed considered suicidal for anyone or any party to consider venturing into the forest. The monster levels were consistent with the second floor mobs, and even worse was the fact that wolf-type monsters were aggressive-types meaning that they will attack on sight, and will naturally attract their packmates.

No one sane would risk dying for the sake of the experience bonus given by the high level area. Death in this game would ultimately mean the death of your body outside, the NERV-Gear would serve as an execution device in electrocuting your brain. Or so the mad creator had said... no one really wanted to test that theory.

Two weeks.

The length of time the players had spent trapped in this death game... yet there were still people who desperately clung on to their disbelief. That this was a mistake, some sort of malfunction, or a cruel prank. As the days continued to stack up, people end up with three choices.

The first choice was obvious, to try and beat this game by clearing all one-hundred levels. A very small percentage of the population chose this route. Even that small percentage rarely ventured out alone, mostly preferring to level safely in large groups and on monsters several levels behind them. It was very slow and tedious, but safety was on the forefront of their thoughts.

The second choice was the easiest to make, it was simply the route of passiveness. The great majority of the population chose to remain in the starting city, refusing to set out. Instead, they either holed themselves up somewhere, passing the days by either picking up a profession or simply socializing. To wait and see, and to cling to their remaining hope.

The final choice... the choice of desperation. Those who simply couldn't comprehend the idea that they were prisoners in a game. Those who wanted out of the maddening situation, who wanted to erase this entire event from their minds... threw themselves off the edge of the world. To the survivors, they effectively committed suicide, yet to them it was considered freedom.

Complete and utter madness.

A fourth, unmentioned group was one that was spoken in contempt and anger. The solo players, otherwise known as the «Beaters». The players that participated in the exclusive beta testing, who ventured out alone and chose to leave the new players in the dust. They were hated because their levels far exceeded the normal players, and also because they had simply left the newbies to fend for themselves. The safest, most luxurious players in the game... or so that was what everyone thought.

The lone figure that strided through the «Lost Forest» with grace was someone that many would assume belonged to the fourth group. Yet the darkly clothed figure was even an exception to that group. Surpassing even the solos in experience and wealth, he was someone that simply existed past the expectations of the general population.

Where most of the known solo players would monopolize the relatively easy dungeons and farming areas to themselves, Kirito had gone further. If the normal players only grinded on mobs that were at least a level behind them, and if the solos grinded on mobs equal or a level higher, then Kirito took it even further.

In the first floor of Aincrad, the highest monster level was 10. Only two monsters were of that level; the «Dire Wolf», and the boss of the floor «Illfang the Kobold Lord». Although the wolves held the same level as the boss, they were noticeably weaker than even the Kobold Sentinels that appeared with the boss. With a group of five the risks of fighting dire wolves would be relatively low.

But the wolf type mob was unique in «SAO». Not only did they attack in packs of four or more, they also targeted the player with the lowest health. As such, not even the solos would consider leveling on the wolf mobs, even if they teamed up.

Kirito suddenly stopped in the middle of a clearing, pulling out his sword for the main hand, he reached for the second sword strapped to his back. Just in time to backstep as a snarling wolf leapt outside of the treeline directly at him. Slashing diagonally he prevented the second wolf from biting onto his forearm, receiving a loud cry of pain from the monster. His second sword cut through the air just in time to injure the third wolf that jumped out.

Dual-Wielding. Something that every single player in «SAO» was allowed to do at a large cost. «Sword Skills»; the only 'magic' type skill that you were allowed to use could not be activated while dual-wielding. A severe handicap since «Sword Skills» did considerably more damage than just slashing at a monster.

If Kirito were a normal player, he would eventually be overwhelmed by the lack of damage he was doing.

But as the fourth wolf joined the fight and leapt from behind him, Kirito twirled dexterously and pierced the wolf directly through the throat with both swords. The shattering of polygons sounded through the ominous forest.

Weak points.

«Sword Art Online» was created by an incredible mind, insane though the person might have been. There were little things in the game that brought out just how detailed it was. The fact that you could move your body and weapon freely with no system assist meant that duels were mostly skill based. The fact that every monster had weaknesses were capitalized in the right hands. And the sheer atmosphere of certain areas made the game seem _alive. _Something that Kirito had noticed steadily.

It was cruel to trap someone in such a detailed world. Instead of fighting bitterly in despair, everyone could have been admiring the dedication that went into creating such an awe inspiring world.

Deftly dodging the next pounce from the angry pack of wolves, Kirito dispatched another wolf with the same thrust. Idly readying himself again, he noted that the wolves had grown angrier and larger, a side effect of killing their packmates. With only two left, he went on the offensive, dashing toward the closest one, his swords flashed in response. Four strikes and he veered to the left, dodging the wolf he had ignored. The injured wolf growled and tried to bite his legs but was swiftly dispatched into polygons as Kirito staked one sword into its back.

With one opponent remaining, Kirito expertly manipulated his game menu and stored his left handed sword. The last wolf, with all of its pack members dead made for a grim sight. Towering at four feet tall, the wolf had grown and its eyes was a gleaming red; a special ability of the «Dire Wolf». The large beast roared in anger as it stared down the player who had killed its friends.

Charging the beast with reckless impunity, Kirito slid under the beast, arms blurring as he activated a sword skill; «Sharp Strike». His sword glowed brightly and successfully slashed at the underbelly of the wolf, leaving a red wound. Kirito flinched back in shock as the wolf stood up on its hind legs, roaring in pain before swiftly slashing out with one of its claws. The strike connected heavily and Kirito was sent tumbling through the air only to land painfully against a tree.

The drawback of the powerful «Sword Skills» was that you were often vulnerable after executing one. His health had dropped into the orange zone, a mere 60% remaining. Kirito grimaced as he eyed the monster rearing up for a charge. He would have to time this perfectly else he will end up with red HP or less.

The «Dire Wolf» roared as it charged toward Kirito, its immense figure made for an intimidating sight. As it reached Kirito it leapt once more in a powerful pounce, claws fully extended in the as the beast reached Kirito, he _spun_ to the left, the graceful dodge causing the beast to miss by a hair's breadth, and instead to crash painfully into the tree behind Kirito.

"How about this!" Once more activating a sword skill, this time one that required more prep time. His sword glowed red as he used a newly acquired «Sharp Flash» to swiftly slash into the beast twice in succession.

The familiar sound of polygons breaking was a relief to Kirito, but what was even more of a relief was the soft and melodious sound indicating a level up.

«Congratulations you have reached Level 9!»

Mission accomplished.

* * *

Exiting the gloomy and rather dangerous forest, an exhausted Kirito headed towards the main city. Grinding steadily for a full eight hours was rather taxing to the body, and if he wasn't trapped in this game, he would have taken breaks in between. Since it was virtual reality though, he only had to deal with the heavy mental fatigue that was especially present in VR games. Hunger and thirst could be steadily ignored if you had the will, but it was always present in the back of your mind.

Lazily browsing through his inventory, Kirito absently categorized the drops he had gotten today and organized several items into different sections. He was rather happy about today's loot since he had gotten two rare items, and enough materials to further upgrade his sword. In terms of experience rate, the wolves would not be efficient at all since they tended to spread apart in the forest, and you had to venture deeply before you found another pack. What he had grinded for however, was not experience, but rather items. The wolves dropped considerably better items than any other mob and a lot more in quantity too.

It was all towards one purpose; to upgrade his **[Anneal Blade]**, which was already at an impressive +5. One of the beta advantages that Kirito knew was the quest in which the blade was rewarded. The blade itself was not really outstanding when you looked at its base stats, but when you considered that it was the only sword that you could upgrade 10 times this early in the game meant that it was easily the best sword for the next three floors or so. Of course that was only if you managed to upgrade it many times in success without failing.

Satisfied with his inventory, Kirito tapped two items and smiled as they appeared. A flask of water appeared in his left hand, and a large loaf of fluffy bread in the right. Munching happily on his food, he was thankful that the game emulated food senses _extremely_ well. Enough so that he could tell the water was very high quality, and the bread was not bad either.

Suddenly, he paused in his trek as he heard the tell-tale sounds of fighting. Since it was night time, there was usually no people outside of the town simply because of the decrease in vision and sometimes increase in monster strength.

Deciding to satisfy his curiosity he walked towards the source of the noise, absently noting the area was where the «Greater Boar» mobs spawned. At level 6 these mobs were particularly hard even in groups as they tended to charge and knockback. At least to the regular players.

Peeking his head through the shrubbery into the large green clearing, he attention was immediately drawn towards the lithe figure seemingly dancing around a large red boar. The player wore an old looking cloak that served to protect his or her identity. What was interesting to Kirito was the fact that the player wielded a rapier, a rather uncommon class of swords due to how 'girly' it seemed to most guys.

The figure was very agile against the boar, striking with rapid sword strikes that glanced off the boar's thick hide, but still causing minor damage. The boar let out a roar, striking out with his tusks, but hitting nothing as the lithe figure jumped back.

Kirito watched in surprise as the player calmly waited for the boar to finish its preparations for a charge - its hind legs moving in anticipation. With a roar the boar charged alarmingly fast, but much like how Kirito had sidestepped the dire wolf, this player waited until the last second before dodging. As the boar hastily tried to stop its charge, the player pounced on the beast, raining blow after blow on its back.

The figure's sword glowed green in preparation of a sword skill - the sword struck the boars head once, and Kirito gasped as the figure was thrown off the boar. As the boar once more charged the downed player, Kirito watched in shock as the player got back up and proceeded to use sword skill after sword skill on the boar until the familiar lights of dispersed polygons filled the area. That crude method of finishing the monster however clearly left the player in low health.

Grimacing at the rather crude showing, he watched as the figure sat down and likely imbibed one of the cheap herbs you could get from the npcs. They healed at a very slow pace, but it was faster than waiting for your hp to naturally regenerate. He could tell that this player had been doing this for awhile considering he couldn't see anymore of the «Greater Boar» mobs in the area.

Kirito stepped out of the tree line and into the field, immediately gathering the attention of the player - who immediately stood back up warily. He didn't know why he was doing this but he felt that this player really could use some help.

Stepping into talking distance, he raised his hands in a gesture of peace. "Hey."

The player stared back in silence, and from here Kirito could only see the shape of the players chin.

"Um... I couldn't help but witness your battle just now." He began nervously as the figure in front of him didn't even twitch. "You were really great in the beginning but near the end, you just kept spamming your sword skills. Which is why you kept taking damage, you should have kept up normal attacks until his charge and then used your sword skills to pre-"

"Does it matter?"

Her voice was so soft and melodious that Kirito almost missed it. "Huh?"

"I killed it in the end right? What does it matter..."

The lithe figure was a girl. The tone of her voice, her posture, and as he regarded her figure his eyes met briefly with hers.

Empty.

That was the feeling he received from just a glimpse; of a person without purpose.

"Still..." He muttered. "You shouldn't put yourself in unnecessary danger. Every little bit of HP counts in this game you know?"

The girl gritted her weapon tighter. "I don't care."

He grimaced at the person in front of him, seemingly teetering on the edge of something he couldn't quite pinpoint.

"Well I care."

The girls head twitched at his reply, this time fully raising her head to meet his.

"_Beautiful"_

Locks of orange-brownish chestnut coloured hair framed her face, intense hazel eyes and a face that simply radiated beauty even with her blank expression... she was simply an oddity in this trapped world. Kirito was stricken by the emptiness in her eyes.

"Why?" She asked in monotone.

He absently looked away from her piercing stare. "Do I need a reason? Every life is precious... and if you won't care for your own then I will in your place alright?"

At his words she looked confused, before frowning. "It doesn't matter... everyone will die soon enough..."

He glared sharply at her, before softening at her look of despair. "Only if they think that way." At her unchanged expression, he elaborated. "Look, this situation we are in is not impossible to break out of. You simply have to believe in yourself, and in each other. With enough people we can clear this game!" He wanted to add that he was a beta tester to cement his claim, but he really didn't want to alienate her further.

"When was the last time you rested?" He suddenly asked.

The girl thought for a moment before answering. "Two nights...?"

Shocked at her answer he shuddered as he asked another. "And the last time you had something to eat?"

"..."

He felt deeply sorry for this girl who was obviously in a dangerous state right now. If he could he wanted to hug her and tell her that everything would be alright... but he knew that it wouldn't work on this particular girl. She still had determination if she could resist eating for this long, and there was always her pride.

"Look... I can't promise you that things will look up, but I will promise you this. As long as I still have hope, I will never give up.. and as long as I'm still alive, I will protect you." He felt rather awkward as he spouted the last bit, but it seemed to work as the girl looked up at him in a new light - he wasn't sure what the expression was supposed to be. "Listen... I know I can't really make you, but promise me you'll eat some of this." He paused to open up a trade menu, where he swiftly handed her the remainder of his food and water. "And...as well, please get some rest. You must be on the verge of collapse right now."

The girl was surprisingly compliant to his words, and Kirito hoped deeply that she would head to town soon after.

Surprising her, Kirito closed the distance between them and grasped her left hand with both of his. "Stay safe okay?"

Piercing brown eyes met her dazed hazel ones as she nodded minutely. Smiling as he dropped her hands, he started his trek back onto the main road.

"Wait." Her voice called out, noticeably louder than her previous words.

He looked over his shoulder at her in question.

"What's your name?" She asked softly.

"Kirito." He replied kindly. "See you around."

Waving a hand behind in parting, he left for the main town, inwardly wishing the best of luck towards the pretty girl and hoping that she will make it out of this death game.

Staring at the retreating figure of the boy who had more or less shaken her out of her lost mind - Asuna absently looked down at the hand that the boy had held.

"_So warm..." _

Manipulating her inventory with a finger she found the items that Krito had given her and selected the **[Light Bread]** x11 and was surprised as the large loaf of bread appeared in her hands. Sheathing her rapier, she took the loaf of bread in both hands and absently nibbled on it.

The taste...it was good. Before she knew it, she had finished the entire thing and felt more full than she had since the start of the game. Resting tiredly on the grass, she absently noted the scent of the air, the feel of the soft grass and the steady stream of tears that ran down her face. Bringing a hand to wipe away the wet tears she relished in the feeling she currently felt.

She smiled... finally feeling _alive_.

* * *

"Ki-bou~"

The voice was loud and rambunctious, attracting everyone's attention in the immediate area. Kirito immediately braced his body for impact.

"OOF"

Not too late apparently as a small figure jumped onto his back in happiness, causing him to grunt in surprise and exertion. The figure was revealed to be a girl with curly auburn hair and light violet eyes. Perhaps her most distinctive feature was the 'make-up' that was applied on her face... in the shape of three whisker marks on each cheek.

«Argo the Rat»

Her SAO title held little to be desired, but the mousy girl accepted the nickname with pride. Serving as a seller of SAO information or as a middle man, she was an information broker; an unofficial class of merchants. For the right col you could buy information about almost anything and anyone from her.

Hastily adjusting his hands in order to safely hold onto the girl on his back, Kirito awkwardly carried the girl in a piggy back. Almost wishing he could press the harassment icon and send her to the system created jail.

"Argo." He sighed, feet moving in order to steer them away from the curious eyes of the players that roamed the market district. "Must you do this to me everytime?"

She tilted her head cutely before snuggling deeper into his neck, causing Kirito to blush. "But its Ki-bou!"

It wasn't as if he was unused to this sort of thing from her as they did share a history. A history that even went further than the beginning of this death game. Rather, he met her during a time where SAO could be considered simply just a game... during the beta test. She was the same way back then, slowly merchanting her way to the top. Of course back then she was less affectionate but more teasing, but ever since she had recognized him despite his different appearance, she had only shown a rather affectionate side with light teasing in between.

He supposed it was due to the heavy atmosphere of the general population. Suspicious glances thrown around, anger and despair lurking beneath the surface.

A week ago, someone had wanted to buy the names of all the known beta testers from her. She refused, and a fight broke out. The aggressor and three of his friends pelted her with jeers and taunts, claiming that she was probably another «Beater».

Kirito quickly put a stop to it since he was nearby, but the damage was already done. Suspicions surrounded the air and accusing stares had followed her ever since. Argo never showed a sign of the unspoken accusations hurting her but he could tell that she was someone who bottled her emotions very well.

Ignoring the jealous stares from his fellow males, he stopped by a nearby fountain and gestured for the girl to get off his back. She did so with a pout but nonetheless sat down beside him by the fountain.

"Did you finish my request?" He asked quietly.

Nodding slowly, she replied. "Yep... although Ki-bou, I don't really understand why you asked me to put out that message."

As a well-known information broker she had access to a network of players who acted as a secondary voice for her. In such a way, Argo was the best way of spreading requests or announcements of any kind, and even rumours.

"Its necessary..." He muttered. "Everyday we continue like this, the more the players will lose hope. We have to do something, anything to show progress."

Indeed, without any sort of guidance the players had fallen into a routine. They stayed near the town, venturing out during the day for some experience, but never too far and never too late. At night the players gathered back into the starting city - much like a group of children, scared of their curfew. Without a clear leader, even if some of the players wanted to advance, they would never want to do so alone.

They needed a voice.

"And you will lead the way?" She asked him curiously. "Really Ki-bou?"

"If no one else will." He answered with confidence.

For the sake of those who were still level 1 and hopelessly lost, he would give them a glimpse of hope. As long as there was a chance, however slim it might be, he hoped that more players will look towards clearing the game.

"Nishishi, If its you Ki-bou, then it's surely possible." She said, causing him to look away in embarrassment.

Suddenly smirking, she poked him in the cheeks. "Hey hey, so did you get my item?"

"Uhm... the claw right?" He replied, fending off her fingers.

Manipulating his rather full inventory he found the item he was looking for and opened up a trade menu. Dragging the item **[Bloody Claw]** onto the screen, he pressed the confirmation button and successfully completed the trade. It was a fairly rare drop from the wolves that really wasn't worth anything since nobody used claw type weapons. Argo was simply the exception, preferring the claw-type weapons and light throwing weapons..

"By the way..." He began, watching the girl giggle to herself as she equipped the rare claw. "What level are you?"

Scanning the girls figure up and down he tried to estimate her current level. Of course it only ended up looking like he was checking out the girls figure, causing her to blush slightly.

"Why Ki-bou thats a rather personal question! - but for you, a limited time offer... 500 col only!" She replied coyly.

Sighing in exasperation, he got up from his seat and waved lightly at the smirking girl. "See you tomorrow Argo."

He almost made it out of range but it was not to be.

"Hey we were supposed to sleep together tonight!" She shouted in the background.

Absolute silence as everyone in the vicinity turned their eyes towards the two.

"Urk..."

* * *

Escaping from the situation with Argo was uncomfortable to say the least.

"_What a troublesome girl."_ He thought wryly.

The time was now midnight but Kirito found he could not sleep. Tomorrow would be a very important step on the way to eventually clearing the game. Whether or not enough players could show up and work together was decidedly unknown. Even if only ten people showed up it would be enough in his opinion.

He was interrupted from his thoughts as the soft familiar sound of a bell sounded through his head. Pulling up his menu, he was alarmed to see several rapid messages from one of the few people on his friends list.

«Silica is missing!»

Hastily adjusting his current path, Kirito immediately headed for the place he knew the girl was most likely at.

Arriving at his destination, which was the single bridge that overlooked a river in the starting city, he was met with a familiar sense of deja-vue. For what sat under the railings of the bridge, with legs dangling idly was the small figure of a girl. From afar he almost mistook the girl for a small child, but as he came a bit closer, he could tell that she was just a very young school girl.

He recognized her immediately from her distinctive twin-tailed hairstyle. Light-brown hair and ruby eyes that stared down at the river in silent contemplation, she made for a solemn sight.

"Silica."

At the sound of his voice, the girl jumped in surprise. Turning her head towards him, she gave him a small smile. "Kirito-san."

Kirito sat next to her by the bridge, legs also dangling alongside hers. Silica was near the group of the youngest players that were trapped in this game. Even though SAO had an age rating of 15+, not many players obeyed, including Kirito himself; who was only 14. For Silica however, he was sure that she couldn't be any older than 12.

"You're up pretty late you know." He said quietly, causing the girl to look at him. "I'm sure Sasha is pretty worried about you."

Silica frowned slightly at the mention of her temporary caretaker. Sasha was an university student who had taken upon herself to look after all of the younger kids, making sure they did not endanger themselves in this situation. She had taken a majority of the kids under her wing and had a place inside of the church. Her presence served as an anchor for the children too young to truly understand why they couldn't log out.

Kirito had heard of Sasha through Argo, and had immediately set out to visit her. Seeing first hand the dozens or so of younger players that were trapped in this game had given him a renewed sense of purpose ever since. He tried to make it a point to give a portion of his earnings to her so that the children could at least enjoy some small luxuries.

To the kids at the church he was referred to as 'Onii-chan' much to his embarrassment, but he still tried to spend some time with them during the lapses in his training sessions. That's where he had met Silica, a rather lonely girl who was old enough to grasp her situation but not young enough to put it to the back of her mind. He had spent a bit more each visit on her in order to break her out of her shell. It had worked somewhat, as Silica talked a lot more these days, but he was still worried about her long-term health.

"I don't want to go back..." She stated softly.

Kirito blinked in surprise, he didn't think she had any trouble with the players in the church. "Why not?"

"Everyone there..." She hesitated slightly before continuing. "They act like everything is fine, when it's clearly not... playing around, laughing, acting like this is just a game." Hugging her knees to her chest, she laughed bitterly. "We can't go back anymore can we Kirito-san? My mom and dad..."

Talking about your life outside of the game was considered taboo to the players. Nobody wanted to be reminded of their loved ones waiting for them on the other side. Of the fact that they were effectively cut off from all they had ever known, potentially forever.

"That's not true." He stated firmly. "Theres a way out, and its possible if we try."

Watery eyes stared back at him, causing him to flinch. "100 floors... we have to beat the boss of each floor, and yet no one is even talking of defeating the first floor boss."

Kirito looked up at the night sky in thought, wondering why everyone seemed to be so pessimistic these days. "That's true." With about two weeks into the game, the average player level would probably be around 5, and 6 if they were lucky. From that pool of players, only a very small handful would likely even consider doing the boss, simply because they were scared of dying. "Nobody wants to talk about the boss because most of them are still waiting for a sign. Something out there to save us, but you know that's not likely to happen anytime soon."

She nodded in agreement. "T-the government should have done something already."

This situation they were in would be world-class news. A terrorist situation which held 10,000 of japan's youth hostage was simply not going to be looked over. Specialists from all corners of the world had likely assessed the issue and had come to the same conclusion. Kayaba Akihiko's insane plan had no holes, and as such, the government was powerless to help them.

They were alone.

"But you know Silica." Kirito began. "Soon enough they will wake up and see that there is no other way but to clear this game. Its simple human nature." To adapt, to survive, and to live long enough to see their family again. "It might take awhile... several months, maybe years, but you know what?"

He held her gaze steadily with his own. "We will clear this game."

She smiled slightly before hiding her face in her hands, trying to muffle the sound of her laughter. His expression, and the seriousness of his stare was simply too amusing to her.

"H-ha ha Kirito-san, you were just like an anime hero there!"

Pouting on the outside, but inwardly happy that he had broke her out of her funk, he reached out with his hand and patted the girl on her head. "Hai Hai... laugh at me all you want."

Getting up from beside her, he offered a hand to the giggling girl. "Come on, lets take you back to the church."

Silica took the hand with a smile. The two were the only ones on the street this late, and Silica felt unusually safe with Kirito. Even though she was going back to doing nothing at the church, she felt much lighter than before.

"By the way Silica." He suddenly said.

She looked up at him curiously.

"The first boss will be cleared sooner than you think."

* * *

The market district was particularly busy during the afternoon. Despite the fact that the majority of players were not even leveling at all, there was still a big demand from the front liners. In typical MMO fashion, the market district was usually monopolized by a few merchants who sought to earn the most col by setting up their business early.

Of course since you were not allowed to purchase any property in the city of beginnings, many merchants had taken to setting up temporary stalls by the side of the streets. Where Kirito currently walked was filled with several of the 'cosmetic' type of professions. Stalls with several cloth type clothing that was actually high quality in appearance, although lacking any stats, and other stalls selling dyes and other accessories were quite popular. The material required for these professions were fairly cheap, being obtainable by questing or even from the level 1 boars.

Further along the district you had the general section where players sold monster drops to each other, mainly just haggling and talking since most players wanted to conserve what little col they had. Kirito actually frequented this section constantly since he had an overabundance of drops. He made sure to deal only with the one merchant he trusted in order to remain somewhat anonymous. Today, he wasn't here to sell his goods at the moment, despite having a rather full inventory.

What Kirito was heading towards was known as the 'weapons district'. For a typical MMO, every player liked to focus on their main weapon, and often spent the most on the weapon slot than any other item. For a game such as SAO, which had every skill scale mainly around your weapon, the preference in upgrading was without a doubt in your main weapon.

This area also had the most amount of front liners that gathered together, and subsequently the most richest district. If Kirito wanted to, he could probably sell his **[Anneal Blade] +5** for an overwhelming amount of col, likely more than what an average party could afford. He had even received multiple requests through Argo, although he never bothered responding to any. In a game where having the best equipment ensured your continued survival, having the best weapon was simply priceless.

It was actually for this purpose that Kirito was heading towards the weapons district, a place he usually avoided since he had no need to look for better weapons. His main hand was already the best item possible for the first floor, and his off hand was another rare drop, **[Sharp Steel]**that he had gotten off a mini-boss. A weapons true potential in SAO was largely attributed to the amount of times it could be upgraded. The fact that his **[Anneal Blade]** could be upgraded a total of 10 times made it astonishingly good since his other weapon could only be upgraded 5 times.

Spotting the familiar pink hair of a certain blacksmith, Kirito made his way towards her stall. It wasn't so much a stall as there was only a large wooden board that sat behind her, displaying the prices for her services. She was currently bent over a blacksmiths anvil and whacking her way at a customers sword. He was oddly amused at just how many male players had lined up for her services, even if most of them were only looking for a quick repair. Female SAO players were of course quite rare, even more so were the ones that seemed approachable.

Finishing her upgrading job, and deeming it a success, she handed it back to a blushing male player. Her personality was light and friendly, and with her uniquely dyed pink hair and eyes, she made for a pretty sight. Her name was Lisbeth, the lone female blacksmith of the district, known for her unmoving stance on prices.

When she finally finished repairing all of the players' weapons, Kirito stepped up causing her to blink in surprise. "Kirito!"

"Yo Lisbeth." He said in greeting. She smiled in response and seemingly dusted off invisible dust from her apron before getting up to greet him from her crouched position.

"Well well well, if it isn't Mr. Upgrade, are you back for more?" The way she said it caused Kirito to blush lightly in embarrassment. To 'upgrade' an item in SAO was relatively simple, all you needed was some raw materials, some col, and a blacksmith. Player blacksmiths were slightly more successful than the NPC's. The trouble was that the amount of materials increased with each upgrade along with the col. There was also an increase rate of failure depending on how upgraded the weapon currently was. As such, there were usually no players at this point in time that sought to fully upgrade their mediocre weapons.

"Um... please don't call me that." He pleaded quietly, causing her to giggle. "And yes, I would actually like to upgrade my sword 3 times." Lisbeth paused in her laughter in order to gape at him in shock.

"Isn't it already +5?!" She shouted, attracting some attention.

Kirito shushed her, placing a finger to her lips. "Hey not so loud!"

She huffed in exasperation, putting her hands against her hips in an expectant posture. "Well? Lets see it then."

Manipulating the trade menu, Kirito offered his hard-earned materials and enough col to cover the costs. Lisbeth looked on wide-eyed as she took stock of the amount of materials she had received. Looking appraisingly at the player in front of her, she really wondered if he was a solo player like he had told her.

"Very well, lets give it a shot." Even though her voice was riddled with confidence, inwardly she was struggling not to break out in sweat. Upgrading the sword three times in succession without failure was likely impossible, and for some reason she truly did not wish to disappoint the person in front of her.

Manipulating her game menus, Lisbeth selected the materials and loaded them into the anvil item. Taking the offered sword from Kirito, she placed it onto the anvil and equipped her smithing hammer. Selecting the upgrade direction of «Sharpness» she took a deep breath before swinging her hammer down. Again, with practiced motions that was quite familiar to her now, she swung a total of 10 times before a confirmation window appeared.

«Upgrade Complete - **[Anneal Blade] +6**»

Letting out a breath of relief she turned expectantly to Kirito. The boy blinked in slight confusion before smiling. "Good job."

Somehow his praise made her slightly giddy, until the expectant look on his expression brought her to reality. She had to do it two more times.

Turning back towards the anvil, she thought back to when she first met this strange boy in front of her. It was actually during the first week of the game that she had finally decided to do something about her situation instead of just leveling on weak monsters. So she had taken up a profession, and had selected blacksmithing of all the other choices. She felt that tailoring or sewing wouldn't be as useful as making weapons, and so she had taken upon herself to train blacksmithing.

It was hard at first, having no idea where to begin and having very little col to invest with, she was lost. But referring to the guidebook that had been available at the general store, she did the best she could and eventually leveled up enough such that she could begin repairing and upgrading weapons. With happiness, she had bought the required items in order to set up her current stall and had waited for her first customers.

They had been friendly enough, and she had fun bantering to them about her business. When they wanted her to upgrade their weapons however was when the trouble started.

Six times.

That was the amount of times she had failed in a row. Three from her first customer and two from his friend. Understandably, they were upset but couldn't really blame her since it was mostly the system randomization at fault. Still, they called her bad luck and was resentful for the lost of their col and materials.

She was crushed. All her hard effort to no avail, from wanting to make a difference in the game to making players angry, Lisbeth wanted to quit right then and there. But then that strange pretty boy had suddenly walked up to her, saying words that had surprised her deeply.

"_Hey, can you help me?"_

Even though she had just failed to upgrade a weapon 6 times in a row, the boy in front of her had wanted his sword upgraded four times in a row. They had drawn a small crowd, and Lisbeth still wanted to leave, but there was something about the look on his face that made her stay.

Like he had believed she could do it.

Whether or not it was all in her head, she still chose to do it, and in a trance-like state she had managed to upgrade his weapon, all four times a success. Immediately afterwards, her first two customers had realized their mistake and had apologized deeply. Yet, as she looked up at her first successful customer, he only had a smile on his face.

Like he had known all along.

Shaking her head from the past, she smiled wryly at the effeminate player in front of her, daydreaming could wait, for now she wanted to succeed. Turning her full attention towards the weapon on the anvil, she glared deeply. Putting all of her feelings into her hammer strikes, she repeated a mantra in her head.

"_Please work."_

Another confirmation message appeared.

«Upgrade Complete - **[Anneal Blade] +7**»

Sighing in relief, she felt unusually exhausted after twenty strikes of a virtual hammer. Looking at the boy from the side of her eyes, she felt her face heat up due to his light clapping.

"One more Lisbeth."

Groaning slightly into one hand, she nonetheless turned back towards the weapon on the anvil. Taking one last deep breath, she began swinging her hammer once more.

"_Please work!" _

Again her mantra seemed to be a success, as the familiar message appeared.

«Upgrade Complete - **[Anneal Blade] +8**»

Sagging deeply against the stone wall behind her, Lisbeth closed her eyes as the feeling of relief ran through her body.

Kirito deftly picked up the sword and swung it twice in succession, a purely aesthetic move, but nonetheless served to satisfy him as he grinned in happiness. "Great work Lisbeth!"

Again, she blushed slightly at the way his praise seemed to affect her. "I-it was nothing."

She watched as Kirito sheathed the sword onto his back before turning back to her with a thoughtful expression. "Are you busy right now?"

"What?" She asked in surprise.

"Well, I was thinking of taking you out for lunch as a way of thanks, of course I'll pay your usual fee too, but if you're too busy maybe next time?" He answered causing her eyes to widen.

"Ah, ahm... Okay!" She shouted. Ignoring the fact that her business was likely at its peak hours at the moment, and that she would be losing out on business, she happily packed up her stall.

Turning towards the amused looking Kirito, she avoided his stare as she fell into place beside him.

"By the way... do you wear your blacksmithing uniform everywhere?"

She blushed heavily.

"Shut up Kirito."

* * *

A steady eye roamed through the area, doing a quick headcount.

Forty-one players, an incredible turn out, but considering the nature of the topic, Kirito doubted even half of them would qualify for this purpose.

'First Boss Information Session' had been the title of the event he wanted spread around. The basic purpose of the event was simple; to discuss all of the strategies that would be required to down the boss. Probably none of them expected an actual boss attempt strategy session at this time.

The majority of the players were in parties and consisted of the front-liners that had continued to grind everyday. The leftovers would either be the solos who were interested or even some from the general population who wanted more information. Either way, he hoped that a good number of them would leave here with a good idea of the method required to beat this game.

The place he had chosen for the meet was outside of the city of beginnings. He did not want a large crowd of unrelated spectators after all. Selecting a large pond that was a short minute walk from the southern gates, it was an ideal area since there was a scattering of rocks and logs that acted as seating and most importantly was the single large tree that acted as a landmark.

Sitting directly in the centre amongst the crowd, Kirito felt slightly nervous as tensions were quite high. Looking to his right where the unaffected Argo sat beside him, he wondered if she was nervous at all. As the coordinator for this meeting, many thought Argo would be the one to lead the session.

Another ten tenseful minutes passed and Kirito grunted as Argo elbowed him on the sides. Reluctantly standing up and attracting all the attention of the players he coughed lightly to gather their attention.

"Alright then." He began, noting many looks of disbelief. "Thank you for coming to this information session." Already he could see faces of discontent on their faces as they deduced that he was just a random unknown. "My name is Kirito, you probably don't know me, but thats irrelevant. We're here to discuss methods of taking down the first floor boss."

"Hey." A voice immediately piped up near the front. The speaker was a player with an oddly shaped cactus hairstyle, his expression was set in a frown. "I've never seen you before on the frontlines, just who do you think you are?"

His tone was arrogant, and Kirito frowned down at him. He ran through several scenarios in his head, but decided on a more passive route. "What level are you?"

The arrogant player blinked in surprise before answering. "Level 6."

If he expected Kirito to be impressed he would be sorely disappointed. Kirito met his stare with one of nonchalance. "I'm level 9."

At his words the whole crowd gasped in surprise. Even amongst the solo players, finding a player above level 7 would be impossible. Yet here was a player that stated he was at least two levels ahead of the highest known players. Many wanted to call him out on his claim but the way that Kirito held himself deterred them. He was simply standing there as if daring someone to challenge his claim.

As expected the rude player opened his mouth in disbelief, but before he could retort a hand was firmly pressed onto his shoulder from behind.

"I think we should let Kirito-san speak." The speaker this time was someone that simply felt _off _to Kirito. Expertly groomed blue hair, confident expression, and a face that was quite handsome compared to the average SAO player, he was an oddity.

"But Diabel-san!" The rude person tried again, only for the blue-haired player now known as Diabel to clasp him once more on the shoulders.

"I'm sure Kirito has some much needed information for us, else we probably would have been dealing with Argo-chan." Something about the way he had said the last part made Kirito want to hurt him.

Seeing that the rude interruptions finally died down Kirito continued. "Anyhow... the first floor boss. «Illfang the Kobold Lord» is his name, obviously a kobold type mob, his main weapon is a rather large tulwar." The crowd payed close attention to his words, knowing that the information being spread was not found anywhere else. "His first phase is simple enough, wear his hp down while avoiding his large swings. This boss has 4 health bars, and as each depletes, he summons multiple «Kobold Sentinel» mobs. Each group should have three to one kobold sentinel since they have a rather large health pool." He paused to let the crowd soak in the information. "Shortly after all 4 health bars are depleted he will enter the second phase, where he unlocks several special abilities including large AoE techniques. This phase should be taken slowly, since a direct hit will be likely fatal."

In the beta test, a full raid group of 48 players could easily clear it even with the majority of players only being level 5. The situation is entirely different when you consider that everyone will be playing extremely defensively, making sure to make no mistake when engaging, and backing off at the slightest hint of critical damage. Most importantly would be the transitional stage, as the bosses tended to behave erratically and Kirito wasn't sure if the boss mechanics stayed the same. Fatality rate in the beta was a rather daunting 30%, and Kirito wasn't sure if they could avoid a fatality even with over-leveling and playing safe.

"I have a question." A rather calm voice called out, belonging to the blue-haired Diabel.

Kirito faced him calmly. "Yes?"

He stood up from amongst the whispering crowd, smiling confidently. "While we appreciate the seemingly accurate walkthrough, I have to ask. How do we know this information is accurate?"

A question that was likely coursing through everyones head at the moment, a fact that Kirito was not unaware of. Looking briefly down at the contemplative girl beside him, he scanned through the crowd, trying to decide how to answer. Most of them were simply looking interested, but a select few were now glaring at him, already assuming where he had gotten his information from. Either he was a «Beater» or he had gotten it from one - likely even the girl sitting beside him.

"I was a beta tester." His simple statement sent shockwaves through the crowd. He was unsurprised when a great many of them scowled or let out noises of discontent. Also surprising was the amount of people that was gazing at him with neutral expressions. He assumed those were also beta testers, or simply didn't care.

"I see..." Diabel accepted the answer, shifting his face into a neutral expression, yet Kirito detected a flash of understanding in his eyes. He was interrupted from his thoughts as an angry voice shouted through the air.

"You bastard!"

Unsurprisingly, the voice belonged to that certain cactus-shaped player. The rather pudgy looking player rose to his feet along with several of his comrades. "I refuse to believe a word coming from this guy's mouth!"

Kirito grimaced as his seemingly peaceful meeting was turned into a mess.

"How can we trust a guy who left us all in the dust! Huh? Look at this guy's items, no doubt way better than ours!"

His friends chimed in, likely also feeling quite frustrated. "Yea, and look at his level!"

"He has probably been hoarding secret areas to himself!"

"Leaving the newbies to fend for themselves, while he likely breezed his way through quests."

"There are people dead because of you!"

"Selfish punks, I refuse to work with beaters!"

"BEATER!"

Absently noting that Argo had gotten up to stand beside him, Kirito gazed on impassively as probably half of the crowd was pulled into the hateful spiel that the boy spouted. Listening with half an ear as they continued throwing jeers and insults, Kirito kept an eye on those who didn't participate. A surprisingly good many simply hung in the back waiting for things to cool down, and those that met his eyes were the ones that he kept note of.

"Is that all?" He suddenly asked in a bored tone. The angry group of players suddenly stopped as Kirito finally showed a sign of being affected by their insults.

"Pathetic."

The group bristled and opened their mouth to retort before he swiftly continued.

"Pointing fingers, shifting blame... like a bunch of children." His impassive gaze suddenly turned judging as he met the eyes of his opposers - every single one of which turned away from his stare. "You believe that beta-testers are somehow responsible for what? 'Not helping you?' or was it 'not helping newbies' or maybe it was for not helping the players that jumped off towards their deaths?"

The entire crowd was silent, no one dared to speak as they took in his grim expression. "You seem to have forgotten something. Beta-testers... of those 1000 selected participants, how many do you truly think could make it out there alone as a solo? How many do you think are amongst you right now, trying their best to get by as a group?" Of the selected few, maybe half of them would have MMO backgrounds, and even then a small percentage of that would maybe be skilled at MMOs. "And something else... you seem to think that beta-testers are not trapped in this game with you, like somehow we are playing a different game. Well guess what? We are in the same prison, trapped by the same madman, all of us wishing to beat this game... to see our family once more."

He was glad that some of them had the dignity to look ashamed at his words, but some like the cactus-haired player still retained a heavy glare.

"And some of you also seem to think that we beta-testers never helped." Swiftly manipulating his inventory, Kirito pulled an item and had it materialize in his hand. The items appearance was that of a brown book. "**[Beginners Handbook]** was distributed free of charge through the general NPCs... the first edition was published by Argo and a select few other beta-testers in collaboration." At this revelation, several of them continued to look abashed, even his main opposer seemed less sure.

"The second edition that was published the next day was from me. " This statement caused several of them to gasp in surprise, alarmed at just how much the player in front of them knew. The second revised edition of the handbook merely added one section to it; combat, but it held well over 20 pages of guides and instructions, even referring to several real life techniques to assist in posture or accuracy. It was vetted as something any player wishing to level should read.

Glaring once more at the thoroughly ashamed crowd, he continued. "Maybe some of you will continue to resent us so called 'beaters', but atleast make sure you have your facts right. Maybe when you wake up and look at the facts, you will see that we only have one enemy in this game... the «Final Boss»"

No one dared to speak. "And maybe when you grow up a little, we can all work together."

He felt a hand rest softly on his shoulders, and Kirito finally noted that none of the resentment lingered in the air.

Sighing loudly Kirito dropped his angry gaze much to the relief of the crowd. "...I will call another meeting in another week's time. If you still wish to work with me to defeat the boss then come... if you refuse to work with a beta tester then so be it, we will clear it without you. " Even though he had said 'we' Kirito really had no idea if he could get anyone besides himself to join him.

Sensing their dismissal the crowd started departing, most of them lost in thought. Kirito made sure to acknowledge those that met his eyes as they left, noting that many of the solo players gave him looks of respect.

Hearing light clapping he turned slowly to see Argo with a wide grin on her face. "You are amazing Kiri-bou... simply amazing."

Awkwardly rubbing the back of his neck, he finally realized that he had basically scolded a bunch of players that were probably older than him. "Well, I feel like I turned away a good many players today. It's going to be hard from now on."

"That's not true." A voice rang out from behind him.

Turning around he was shocked to find familiar pink hair. "Lisbet?"

"Heya." Her smile was bubbly, and Kirito was about to ask further before he noticed another person beside her.

"Silica?!" The shorter girl met his gaze meekly.

"Kirito-san..."

Head swimming, Kirito felt extremely confused at the presence of the two girls he least expected to be here.

"Fufufu~ I see you started on your harem early Ki-bou." The statement caused the two girls in front of him to blush deeply.

"Urk...

Before he could scold Argo once again for saying outrageous things in public, another voice called at him.

"Kirito."

Still soft and beautiful as ever, he recognized the voice immediately. Turning around and meeting the familiar Hazel eyes was his confirmation.

"_The solo player?"_ He wondered astoundedly. _"Could she have been here the whole time?"_

Her next words however turned his world upside down.

"Please take responsibility."

Feeling, rather than seeing the triple killing intent coming from the other girls, Kirito wondered what he had done to truly deserve this.

* * *

**A/N: What an incredibly long chapter for me.**

**I want to start by thanking everyone for the reviews, especially those who wrote paragraphs and those who wrote to me. All reviews are appreciated.**

**Now about this chapter, initially I was considering either Sinon or even Yuuki as a potential party member for Kirito but I don't feel its very viable near the beginning. You can already tell where I deviated from the main storyline, about 2 weeks ahead. Although I do try and stay near the main characterizations, feel free to tell me If I made a character too OOC or awkward. **

**Suguha unfortunately won't be in SAO with Kirito, because I think if she were in it then Kirito would be vastly different. He would focus most of his time on protecting her, and would likely not interact with others much. Of course that would be perfectly fine for a Suguha/Kirito fic, which I think there should be more of. **

**So Kirito's current party consists of Argo, Lisbeth, Silica, Asuna. Theres room for one more, but I think that will be filled later on, probably by Sinon (Its easier to write a background/characterization for her than Yuuki). Silica may or may not continue onwards to the front lines, as she is quite young. She will definitely be in the guild though. **

**I think Argo had tons of potential in actual SAO, I mean come on every anime needs a bubbly character like her to tease the MC. Lisbeth doesn't even come close to Argos level of teasing. Plus, she's actually quite cute (look up her picture). **

**Anyways, let me know what you guys think about this chapter, and about the current girls/future girls.**

**Thanks for reading.**

**Next Chapter: Royal Swords**


	3. Chapter 3 Royal Swords

_Feeling the weapon in his right hand, he was surprised at how 'real' it felt, the weight, the balance... they were all familiar._

_Looking around for a suitable player, he met clear blue eyes who looked back at him arrogantly._

"_Hey, want to duel?"_

* * *

Kirito nervously glanced around the circular table. Looking around at the players that sat with him, he made sure not to make eye contact lest he invoke their wrath again. Really, how was it fair that he was punished when he was the victim of the misunderstanding. Girl logic was quite scary.

Sitting to his left was a grinning Argo, who was engrossed in a conversation with Silica. He deeply hoped she wasn't corrupting the younger girl, but judging by the look of awe on Silica's face, his hopes were quickly dashed.

To his right was where Lisbeth sat, the pink haired girl already connecting with the newcomer; a rather pretty girl much like herself. The solo player that Kirito had met yesterday had agreed to come with them after clearing up the misunderstanding. He was truly happy that she seemed to have opened up, if the small smile on her face was any indication.

Asuna.

That was her name, and Kirito felt oddly satisfied knowing that she had broken out of her depressive shell. After taking off her cloak, she was rather dazzling to look at, and Kirito felt nervous at just how much attention he had attracted, traveling with the four girls. Though he would take the attention of the crowd any day over the judging stares from the girls in his company. They seemed to be giving him slight looks every now and then, and Kirito was scared to find out what each of them wanted from him. He was of course quite experienced in the art of caving to the whims of women, a sentiment shared by his father.

There was a sudden lull in the conversations around him as the NPC waiter arrived with their drinks. As the rather life like NPC left the table, Kirito gulped as the girls focused their attention on him. Argo smirked as she felt his discomfort. After the new girl had explained what Kirito had done for her, the other girls had all laughed in unison as they knew Kirito's personality. That didn't stop them from teasing him relentlessly though.

"So, Asuna-chan." Argo began, already laughing inwardly as Kirito twitched. "What was it that you wanted from Ki-bou here?"

The group turned towards the brown haired girl who was sipping quietly at a glass of iced tea.

She blinked at Argo's unique form of addressing Kirito before speaking. "He said that we could beat this game if we worked together... I want to see that." Seeing Kirito look at her with a faint smile caused her to look away, embarrassed.

"...Me too." The voice came from the youngest person at the table, causing Kirito to look at her in surprise. "I'm sick of doing nothing but waiting... If I can do anything, anything at all to help, then I want to try.."

"Silica..." Kirito felt the helplessness in her voice and couldn't help but feel sad for her. She must have been thinking about this for awhile now, and Kirito knew how it felt to be powerless in a situation.

Argo reached a hand out to pat the smaller girl on the head. "Don't worry Silica-chan, we will definitely help you out. Ki-bou will too."

Kirito nodded firmly at her questioning look. "Of course." Even if he didn't want the younger girl to risk herself on the front lines, helping her gain inner strength was important. It was that feeling of helplessness that had caused over a thousand people to take their lives after all.

Seeing that Silica no longer seemed sad, Argo moved onto the last member of their group with a smirk. "So that leaves our favourite blacksmith-chan."

Lisbeth blushed as everyone turned their heads towards her. "I..uhm of course also want to see this game cleared..."

Argo didn't think that was her only reason for being here but let her thoughts be unvoiced.

"Then its settled." She said aloud, causing the group to look at her. "We will be helping Ki-bou defeat the first floor boss!"

Kirito blinked as everyone took up a resolute expression on their faces. Even if he wanted to object, he knew that this wasn't just about him and his ideals. It was about the future of everyone in this death game.

This was no time to be selfish.

* * *

The group made for quite a site traveling through the market district. An effeminate looking guy leading four rather cute girls. Two of the girls were rather well known, one being the infamous information broker and the other being the only female blacksmith. The last two girls, one who simply radiated beauty was unknown but was attracting a large amount of attention and the last one was a twin tailed younger girl who walked shyly beside Asuna.

All in all, the group made for a very interesting sight, especially to the front liners who had never seen them before.

Kirito ignored the piercing stares from his fellow players as he steadily lead the way to a merchant he knew. After the girls had decided that they wanted to help in clearing the first floor boss, he immediately assessed their equipment and levels and had found that all of them barring Argo needed some upgrades. Silica who of course was only in the starting gear would definitely need armour and weapons. Lisbeth and Asuna only needed some new armour since their main weapons were quest rewards.

Since they had a week before the inevitable boss fight, he had decided to help them level, especially in the case of Silica who needed at least 4 more levels. It would be easily doable in a party of course, but making Silica ready mentally would be a whole different question.

He suddenly stopped near the end of the district where a merchant's stall was set up at a good distance away from everyone else.

Seeing the merchant in question Kirito raised a hand in greeting. "Yo Agil-san."

The merchant was an incredibly intimidating figure at first glance, and Silica hid shyly behind Asuna. Standing tall over the younger players, he was clearly an adult at first glance. Bald hair, with sharp brown eyes and a short beard, he was a well known merchant amongst the clearers.

"Kirito-san." He muttered in greeting, taking in the strange entourage around Kirito. "When I told you to relax several days ago, I didn't mean this..."

Laughing awkwardly, Kirito shifted slightly away from the girls' questioning glances. "Erm... anyways, I need some help from you.

"Oho, you needing my help? Well, I guess I have to hear this out then."

Agil was someone Kirito had bumped into during the first week, and was someone that had made quite an impression. While trying to sell his numerous amount of drops, he had wandered around the market looking for a reliable merchant. His hopes were dashed when he noted that most of the merchants besides the cosmetic ones tended to ignore the 'weak' looking players, and wanted to deal only with the stronger ones.

The reason he wanted to sell his equipment to a player-merchant was that he thought the drops could help the newer players. If he truly wanted to he could have just sold his drops to a NPC at a small loss, saving him the trouble of interacting with the merchants. Yet, he wanted a way to help the newbies who were afraid of venturing out without a full set of gear.

It was by coincidence when he saw the intimidating merchant speaking to a newbie player. He had at first thought that it was a scene of bullying, judging by the tears in the younger players eyes. But as he came closer he overheard the true situation, of the new player getting scammed out of all of his col and items in order to join a new party as a sign of trust. He had been ready to assist the unfortunate soul when Agil did something which surprised him. He simply offered a full set of gear to the crying player at no cost, simply telling him to be more careful from then on.

Kirito decided then and there to sell all of his drops to the kind-hearted merchant. He had learned that Agil was someone that constantly looked out for others, judging by his insanely cheap prices in comparison to the other merchants. He was obviously not seeking to profit from anyone during this period of depression.

"Well, I need you to gear these three up." He said, gesturing to Lisbeth, Asuna, and Silica. "Only Silica will need a full set, and only armour for the other two." Looking at an expectantly smiling Argo, Kirito reluctantly added. "And something for Argo..."

Argo raised an eyebrow in question. "I can do that... who will be paying though?"

"Put it on my tab..." Kirito sighed, It seemed like his hard earned col would be disappearing faster than he had thought.

Smirking at the boy, Agil motioned for the girls to join him. "Very well, come along girls, my inventory is right over there."

Watching the girls follow the tall man, Kirito made to follow but has halted. "Oh and you won't mind watching the front will you Kirito?"

Sighing dejectedly, Kirito headed towards the stall. He hoped that he would atleast have some col left over for some food, a fleeting dream it seemed.

The girls had followed Agil to three large tables that were placed a short distance from his stall. The tables were filled with an assortment of neatly arrayed equipment, ranging from light armour to heavy chainmail. One table held only weapons, which caught SIlica's eye as she was still unsure of which weapon to take.

"Well, feel free to take whatever you girls want since this is going to be all on Kirito." Agil said while smirking. "I would recommend you take advantage of this, since my selection is quite expensive today."

Argo smiled happily as she scanned the tables for an expensive upgrade. The rest of the girls reluctantly joined her, as they were quite inexperienced. Scanning the large assortment of armour, Lisbeth picked up a chain mailed vest while Asuna seemed to be staring at a light-blue cloth armour.

"Uhm..." The girls turned to stare at a nervous Silica. "I don't know what to get..." She muttered, wishing Kirito were beside her.

"Ah sorry Silica-chan." Lisbeth said apologetically, moving besides the younger girl. "For now... I think we will get you a full set of the 'warrior' armour." She picked up the pieces of a dark red looking armour set, and pushed them onto Silicas hands.

"UWAH~"

The girl fell onto the floor as the rather heavy equipment overwhelmed her pitiful STR stats.

"Oops..."

The group watched in amusement as Lisbeth tried to appease the pouting girl on the ground. Asuna smiled slightly before going back to her selection, picking up the cloth armour she moved towards weapons section where Argo was. Agil was also there in a discussion with the mousy girl who was gesturing wildly with her hands.

"And I'll have you know that Claws are so much better than crappy axes!"

"As if! Claw weapons are for sneaky rogues who can't fight directly!"

"Thats why you don't have claw weapons? How rude!"

"I only stock useful things here, you mouse!"

Bewildered at their bantering, Asuna made to interrupt. "Ah..."

Twin blinks answered her as they halted their argument. Seeing the equipment in her hands, Agil smiled. "Made your selection?"

At her nod, he opened up a trade screen. "Very well, here you go."

Completing the trade, Asuna immediately equipped her newly acquired armour set.

"Oooh." Argo scanned the girls body with an expert eye. "Now that's a very cute looking outfit Asuna-chan. Are you trying to attract somebody?"

Asuna blushed. "N-no! I just like the colour." Light blue, with white stripes, the cloth armour was stylish while offering some protection at the same time.

"Sure sure~ Now I'm going to help Silica-chan since there's obviously nothing valuable to upgrade from here."

Agil growled as Argo skipped her way back to Lisbeth and Silica. Asuna smiled awkwardly at her retreating form.

"That girl..." He muttered to himself. "Such a bad influence, I wonder why Kirito-san hangs out with her so much."

At his words, Asuna blinked in surprise. "Do you know Kirito well?"

He looked at her in surprise before smiling. "Well, I wouldn't say well since we mostly just talk business, but Its hard to not want to get to know him with his personality."

Asuna knew that feeling very well, for one of the main reasons she had sought him out was to find out more about him. About how somebody could be so strong in the face of this situation, she wanted to know what drove him.

"Kirito-san... He is somebody special thats for sure. Even if I have only known him for a week or so, I can already tell, he is somebody that's going to go far." Agil looked away in thought. "He also has a flaw you know. He tries so hard to help those around him he usually forgets about himself."

"...I see." She had wondered about that part of him. The side that seemed to look out for others had a cost it seemed.

"Even now, I see that he has made a connection with you girls. Likely helping you out at some point in time without a regard for himself. I really worry about the guys future."

Putting others in front of himself at all times was a sure way to get yourself killed in this game.

"...But really, If anyone can do that and survive in here. Its that boy."

Asuna smiled in agreement.

* * *

Walking outside of the town was a relief to the boy, who had to deal with stares all throughout the day. The afternoon sun combined with the soft breeze made for a rather relaxing type of weather, which made Kirito want to take a nap. Of course, one had to have priorities in this situation, and he couldn't afford to slack off, not with lives on the line.

Eyeing the group of four girls behind him as they conversed with each other. He was glad that they connected with each other, as he knew that each of them had to have been lonely during the stressing week. It also helped that each of them were the same gender, as he knew that girls tended to connect with each other more easily.

Silica in particular had connected rather well with the others, smiling more today, than he had ever seen. Equipped with red armour and with her uniquely twin-tailed haircut she made for a rather adorable sight. He eyed the weapons she had chosen; a short sword and a shield, and decided that it fit her small figure rather nicely. The shield would enable her to block rather than dodge, and the short sword would let her swing much faster given her smaller stature.

Lisbeth was finally equipped with something other than her legendary apron, choosing a grey and silver coloured vest along with a skirt. She would have looked like a «Knight» class, if she didn't have a rather intimidating two-handed mace strapped to her back. He was rather surprised at her choice of weapons, but decided not to comment until he had seen her fight.

Argo had chosen very light cloth armour similar to Asuna, along with a pair of low-cut shorts that showed off her shapely legs. She already had her claw weapon equipped and together along with her odd makeup she looked like a hidden class. It suited her image very nicely, and Kirito refrained from commenting on her toned body.

Asuna looked formal in her chosen outfit; a blue and white striped cloth chest armour, and a skirt. Along with her rapier and long flowing hair, she looked like some sort of noblewoman. Kirito thought she looked rather like the beautiful elf NPCs had seen in the beta, something that he would never voice aloud of course.

"Here we are." He called out. The field he was in was familiar to the girls but was rather new to Silica. This field was only level three and was populated by the boar type mobs, mostly «Blue Boar». At this point in time everyone had mostly outleveled the area and there were no more newbies setting out which made the area completely empty. It would be a perfect area for Silica to grasp the basics.

"Alright, have you girls formed a party?" He asked to which he received nods. At level 9, he would impede the amount of experience gained by a rather big factor, therefore he opted to not join the party. "Asuna and Argo will clear that group." He gestured to a large clump of the boars. "Silica and Lisbeth, we will clear that one." He pointed to a much smaller concentration.

He knew that Asuna and Argo were quite experienced already with leveling, both being at level 6. Silica who was at level 1 and Lisbeth at level 4 would need some help and tutoring.

Watching the the girls all agree, he stood back and watched as Argo and Asuna dashed towards their targets. This was more than just a leveling party for Silica of course, as he needed to know what each of their individual skills were in order to be ready for the boss fight.

Seeing Argo arrive at her chosen target, the two girls and Kirito were rather surprised at her style of fighting. Simply put, it was the most vicious way of fighting he had seen. The claw weapon allowed her to swipe with extreme speed, and as he watched her activate a sword skill with the claw, he suddenly felt bad for doubting her capabilities. She cleaved through the boar with her red sword skill, and Kirito noted the very small downtime for her particular skill set. Immediately throwing out a needle with her offhand, she attracted another angry boar to her location.

Surprised at Argo's effectiveness, he turned to Asuna to see her dexterously manipulating her rapier to pierce through a boar mid-jump. Much like how he had been when he had first seen her, he was astounded at her speed. Usually one could not make rapid pierce type moves with a sword that fast, but Asuna seemed to be stabbing so rapidly that her sword was a blur. He noted that Asuna seemed to be tunnel-visioned on her current target, a potential mistake that was saved by Argo coming in from beside her.

"Lets go." He said aloud, startling Lisbeth and Silica from their awe. They both gulped as they followed Kirito to their targets, they felt particularly inadequate compared to the Asuna and Argo.

"Come on, Lisbeth take care of that one." At Kirito's expectant tone, Lisbeth equipped her two-handed mace nervously before walking towards the boar. Taking a deep breath, she charged and activated a sword skill «Heavy Strike». Her weapon glowed blue before it struck the boar with incredible force, causing the boar to fly away comically, skidding along the ground in pain. The cost of the heavy damage was noticed right away when Lisbeth remained rooted to the spot, unable to move her weapon. She recovered just in time as the boar reached her and she destroyed it with one more hit.

She blushed as Silica cheered from her position beside Kirito, who was smiling. "Not bad Lisbeth, that was quite powerful." The heavy impact of her skill was something that was quite useful because it allowed her to interrupt a monster that was preparing a skill or for last hitting due to its damage. "You shouldn't open up with a sword skill though, you left yourself open for a good while. We are lucky that the boars are not aggressive types."

Lisbeth nodded thoughtfully, she had never considered that and had always used her sword skills right away in order to deal the most amount of damage. Of course she had also never partied with anyone before.

"Silica, your up." Kirito said to the girl beside him, causing her to lock up in fear. Looking worriedly at the girl he patted her shoulders lightly. "Don't worry Silica, your equipment is much stronger than it usually would be at your level. Plus, me and Lisbeth will watch out for you."

At his words, Silica nodded slowly before bringing out her sword and shield. "Okay..."

"Now, that boar right there." He gestured to a lone boar that was lazily sleeping on the grass. "I want you to run up to it and use a sword skill on it, when it wakes up you need to bring up your shield as it will likely charge you."

Maneuvering the girl so that she faced the sleeping monster, Kirito pushed her lightly in the direction. "Go for it SIlica!"

The girl ran towards the monster reluctantly, but steadily. She raised her short sword in the air, and to Kirito's shock, she lightly slashed at the boar with a normal strike. Of course, the boar woke up angrily at the light amount of damage causing Silica to squeak as it struck out at her with its tusks. Her shield flew through the air, not because of the boar, but rather because she threw it away in surprise.

"KYAH~"

The situation turned humorous as Silica screamed and ran away from the smaller monster. Her hands raised in the air as the monster charged at her, slowly gaining on her. Kirito would have laughed if not for the fear in the younger girls eyes.

"Calm down Silica!" He shouted, but it had no effect as the girl continued to run in circles.

Unsheathing his sword he dashed towards the girl in a burst of speed, and faster than Lisbeth could keep up with his sword blurred and the boar exploded into polygons. Silica fell onto the grass in relief. Kirito crouched down so that he could be eye level with the girl and tried not to laugh at her scared expression.

"That was so scary!" She exclaimed, causing Kirito to chuckle. "Its not funny Kirito-san!"

Lisbeth joined them shortly, donning a rather large smile. "Good one Silica."

"Really Silica, you should have just told us that you didn't know how to use sword skills." Kirito told the pouting girl. Getting up and offering a hand to the younger girl, he fetched the fallen shield and handed it back to the girl. "Here, I'll show you."

He brought his sword up slowly. "To use a sword skill you simply have to start its required motions and the system will automatically finish it for you." Raising his sword in the air, he made a diagonal cut and Silica watched in surprise as his sword glowed red. "That was «Slash, a rather simple sword skill that can be done with most weapons."

"Oh." The girl muttered, staring at her short sword. She had of course not known anything about the game before joining as it was a spur of the moment decision. Raising her sword in an attempt to copy what Kirito had just demonstrated she was surprised as her sword glowed red and did exactly what she had seen. The feeling of her body moving on her own had surprised her though.

"Good job." He praised her. "Ready for another boar?"

She nodded firmly, determined to get this down. "Yes."

He pointed at another boar that was further off the side, and Silica let out a loud cry as she charged. Seeing the boar notice her arrival and tense in preparation, Silica prepped her sword in the same position and was filled with relief as the system took over and executed the sword skill. The sword sliced neatly through the air and left a large red scar on the boars face, causing it to let out a cry of pain.

"Ah!" Silica flinched as the boar leaped at her, instinctively brining her shield up. The boar bounced off the shield and Silica almost fell backwards in shock. Her HP gauge fell just a little and she tensed as the boar got ready to charge her once more.

"Block and stab!"

The boar squealed loudly as it charged towards her, and as it met her shield Silica deftly struck out with her sword, piercing through its hide. The shattering of polygons sounded through the area and Silica let out a loud sigh of relief. Finally defeating a monster on her own was invigorating, and she felt exhausted yet oddly energized.

"Great job!" The voice came from Lisbeth as she and Kirito walked up to her. "Much better than my first time actually..."

"Yep, that was great Silica." Kirito smiled, feeling the need to pat the smiling girl on the head. Silica beamed at the praise, finally feeling somewhat good about herself. "Now lets go clear the rest, you too Lisbeth."

At his words, Silica groaned softly into her hands while Lisbeth smiled.

It was a good while after that Kirito found himself simply watching as the four girls went about clearing the area. Lisbeth and Silica had found a tempo that seemed to work as Lisbeth would start the fight with a large attack and SIlica would step in to attract the mobs attention, blocking when needed. They would alternate every time Lisbeth had her sword skill up, creating an efficient farming method.

Asuna and Argo on the other hand... was simply a sight to see. They had apparently, in the short time that Kirito had left them alone, created a pace that would have been terrifying to most players. Argo would throw her needles out at a rapid pace, attracting multiple boars that zoned in on her location. Meeting the first one, she would deftly exchange blows with her claw, before breaking off and starting onto the second boar. The first boar would be taken over by Asuna who would finish it off rapidly, then switching to the second boar that Argo would eventually leave wounded.

Their pace was simply astounding, as the general area around them was completely empty, and Kirito couldn't help but be impressed at their teamwork. Smiling as the the two girls cleared another large group, he felt that the chances of them clearing the first boss with no casualties was much higher than he had ever thought. He would still have to watch over Lisbeth and Silica though, as he felt that they needed more work.

Seeing that the skies were rapidly turning dusk, already bathing the area in an orange light, he gestured for the girls to gather. Lisbeth and Argo noticed him right away, and the girls steadily made their way over.

"I think we should go back for today, its already getting dark." He said to the group, noticing that they all had signs of exhaustion from the rapid training session.

"But we can still go on." The voice came from Asuna, who he noted wasn't showing as much exhaustion as the others.

Looking around at the other girls he was surprised to see the determination in each of them, even from Silica who looked utterly exhausted.

"Don't worry we will train more tomorrow. But for now, I think you could all use some rest, especially Silica." Indeed the younger girl seemed to be swaying on her feet.

Seeing their slow agreements, he gestured them to follow him.

"Uhm, Ki-bou. The boars have respawned."

Kirito frowned briefly as he scanned the area, already noting that their path was blocked by a large amount of the monsters. It was supposed to be a high respawn area after all, but he was surprised at just how many had spawned at the same time. It must have been due to the extreme speed in which Argo and Asuna had cleared them.

"Its alright, I'll clear the way." He said firmly, surprising the girls.

Equipping his main hand, and manipulating his inventory for his left hand, he surprised them as two swords appeared in his hands. He manipulated them expertly in his hands as he swiftly dashed forward. The first boar exploded into polygons the moment Kirito came into range, causing the other boars to gather into his area. It was to be expected simply because monsters became more aggressive at night.

If Asuna was a graceful dancer, and Argo was a lithe assassin, then Kirito was both of them combined and more. Immediately from the start, the girls could tell his stance was more than just for show as he expertly slashed with both swords. The speed in which his swords came raining down on the mobs he encountered was staggering, and the fact that his body danced around the incoming attacks like it was nothing made him an incredible sight to see.

All of the girls watched in awe, including Argo as she had never seen him fight in person. Slowly following the sound of exploding polygons, they watched him clear his way through the boars like they were bugs. Clearing the way faster than they could as a group, and with no sword skills had cemented a fact in their minds.

Kirito was strong.

So much stronger than any of them had had thought possible, and as they watched on as he finally finished clearing the way, they wondered just where his strength came from.

* * *

"Ooooh!"

Loud gasps came from behind him as he arrived at their destination. The western styled house was an oddity, being situated a short distance from the city. Having been sleeping here since the start of the game, Kirito smiled fondly as he entered the house. For a very moderate price, one could rent the house from a quest NPC, but only after they had completed his hard quest. One had to wonder why Kirito went out of his way to acquire this house, but that question would be immediately answered as they saw the inside of the building.

Equipped with western styled furnishings and a variety of rather nice interior decorations, the house made for a rather nice resting area. The fact that it was equipped with two bedrooms, each with very fluffy beds was a bonus. The extra cost of renting the house was immediately looked over when you noticed that their was a bath. Something that he knew a lot of players, especially females would kill to have.

It was actually for this reason that Argo had constantly pestered him over the week to let her stay at his house. He had of course rejected her at every turn simply because having a guy and a girl alone in a house would be inappropriate in his opinion, and highly awkward - something that Argo obvious didn't care about.

When he had suggested to the group to sleepover at his place Argo had immediately countered with: "Ofufufu~ already trying to get us to sleep with you Ki-bou?" To which he had to deal with rapid blushing and awkward eye contact.

That all changed when he mentioned the bath. Asuna had gotten a dangerous gleam in her eyes, along with Silica and Lisbeth. Argo, who had already taken advantage of his bath numerous times, simply smirked as she watched him squirm under their stares.

"Bath. Now."

Nervously pointing towards the direction of the bathroom, Kirito let out a sigh of relief as Asuna led the girls away from him.

"Don't peak now Ki-bou~" Argo shouted as the girls all went through the door. Kirito shuddered as Asuna turned her head back to glare at him one more time before entering. Girls could be incredibly scary sometimes.

Deciding to rest on the sofa, he sighed in contentment as he lazily stretched out on the comfy furniture. He could have fallen asleep right then and there if it wasn't for the sounds...

"Ah! D-dont touch me there Argo!"

"Fufufu~ You have such smooth skin Asuna-chi, are you like this in real life too?"

"EEP! Where are you touching now!"

"KYAHH~"

Kirito hastily jumped off the sofa and headed to the second floor, where he opened the door to the balcony. The night air helped cool his blushing face, but did nothing to stop his imagination from running rampant. He should have expected this from Argo, and he felt somewhat sorry for the girls that were now under her touchy hands.

Sighing softly, he smiled wryly when he thought back on Argo's personality. Even though she loved to tease him, he noticed that she only played around with those that she liked; probably only him. She obviously seemed comfortable with the other girls, and that was something he was happy for. Argo was a person who kept her true feelings inside, something he could relate to, but the fact that she was likely lonely was also something that he knew.

Leaning over the edge, he saw the clear night sky, and wondered at how well the game simulated the stars. He was reminded of an old memory, of being young and playing in the countryside with Suguha.

"_Suguha..."_

The thought of his sister brought a painful feeling to his heart. She would have undoubtedly been crushed by his current situation, as he knew that she tended to be extremely affectionate towards him. Something that she had always done from childhood, always staying by his side and always searching for his approval or happiness. At this rate he would be missing her national championships, and he deeply hoped that she would not underperform due to his situation.

But the situation was not helpless, not anymore. With a clear goal in his head, Kirito could put his entire being behind it. And with the help from his current party members, he felt that they had a good chance.

"_Wait a little longer Sugu." _

A short while later, he heard the voices and footsteps of the girls as they walked up the stairs.

"There you are."

Looking back, he let out a sigh of relief as all of the girls seemed to be properly dressed, even Argo. She had from time to time, teased him by walking out of the bath in only a towel or very skimpy clothing that he had no idea where she could have gotten it from.

"Hey. Had a good bath?" The girls all nodded, although Asuna glared lightly at Argo, clutching her hands to her chest.

"It was amazing Kirito, I've never felt this clean in my life!" Lisbeth glowed in happiness, basking in the afterglow of a bath after two weeks without one.

"It was so good..." Silica mumbled from her spot, and Kirito noticed that she seemed to be swaying on her feet.

"Uhm...Silica, would you like a bed?" The girl nodded sleepily at his question, and Kirito smiled. "Its over here, theres only two bedrooms so you girls will have to share."

Walking a short distance to a western styled door, he opened it, receiving wide eyed stares from the girls. The room was furnished rather nicely with a dresser, mirror, and walk-in closet, but what caught their immediate attention was the large queen sized bed. It looked so large and fluffy that Silica immediately headed towards it in a daze. Collapsing onto the bed, she let out a loud sigh of contentment as she snuggled cutely into the sheets.

"You've been holding out on me Ki-bou..." Argo muttered, sending a suspicious glare his way.

"Ahaha..." If he was to be truthful, the beds were one of the main reasons he had rented this place immediately, being the same level of comfiness as in the beta.

Seeing Asuna looking longingly at the bed, Kirito chuckled lightly. "You can join her if you want Asuna, two to a bed should be enough. I'll take the couch downstairs."

The girl nodded in a daze, walking towards the bed and collapsing in the same manner as Silica. Watching their dozing faces on the sheets, Kirito wished he had some sort of recording device as the scene was simply adorable.

"I wouldn't mind sharing a bed with you Ki-bou."

Kirito felt a sudden chill down his spine as Lisbeth sent a glare at him. Even more nerve wracking was that Asuna opened one tired eye to stare at him judgingly.

"...I'll take the couch."

* * *

It was much later into the night when everything had settled down that Lisbeth found herself staring at the ceiling. After the excitement from today, she found that she couldn't sleep even after the warm bath and the extremely comfortable bed that she shared with Argo. She would never have expected all of this to be a result of deciding to help Kirito.

Kirito was a boy that had been frequent on her mind lately, someone who had stood out to her ever since their first meeting. He had visited her constantly during his short breaks, but each meeting, no matter how short, seemed to bring joy to her. Soon she found that Kirito's visits were often the highlight of her week. He seemed to know exactly what to say, usually listening to her ramble about a particular annoyance or customer with no complaint. Always with a small smile on his face, he was a large reason why she could continue looking forward to each day in this death game.

It was his kindness that brought her to join him at his meeting, as she wanted to be there to give him support. He hadn't needed it of course, but along the way she had met with Silica, a girl she had met once before with Kirito. They had become friends quickly, both seeing similarities in their situation.

His speech... was moving to say the least. He seemed to command an unique aura that had made Lisbeth shiver in awe. Even with his feminine looks and relatively slim body figure, he gave such a commanding aura that she was sure wouldn't be out of place in the military, or even in an army.

Sighing lightly into the pillow, she wondered what her friends back at school would say. They would most like tease her about Kirito, but then that was to be expected since she was usually the one to tease her friends. Boys... they never really interested her as much as they interested her friends. She found most of them to be crude and annoying, with the popular ones only being remarkable due to physical appearances. She briefly wondered what made Kirito so different from the others, but couldn't come to a conclusion - there was simply too much to list.

"Lisbeth-chan?"

The voice of Argo caused her to nearly fall off the bed in surprise. "Wah!"

"Hehe~ So you were awake Lis-chan."

Turning her body around so that she could face the smiling girl, Lisbeth tried to slow her rapidly beating heart. Pouting at the mousy girl, Lisbeth raised an expectant eyebrow.

"Couldn't sleep?" Argo was dressed in a light brown pajama with a hoodie that came with two mouse-like protrusions. Along with her whisker marks and grinning face, Lisbeth could see why she was known as «Argo the Rat».

"Yea..." She muttered softly in reply.

"Penny for your thoughts?" Argo asked softly, and Lisbeth blushed lightly.

"I-its nothing, just too excited to sleep I guess..."

Lisbeth simply did not want to reveal the person in her thoughts that had kept her awake. It wasn't that she disliked Argo, quite the contrary as they sometimes met with Kirito, but It was simply because of the awkwardness that would surely ensue. She didn't know what Argo's feelings were for Kirito, but she knew that the girl was overly affectionate for a reason.

"I knew it, we should've had Ki-bou sleep with us." Seeing Lisbeth sputter incoherently along with a bright red blush, Argo laughed. "So that's what you were thinking about."

Amidst her stuttered denials, Argo simply shook her head wryly. "Its fine Lis-chan. He is a pretty fine subject isn't he?"

Silently agreeing but not voicing it aloud, Lisbeth was confused at the tone Argo was taking.

"You know how special Kirito is don't you?" At her questioning look Argo elaborated. "How he cracks through the walls you build around yourself like nothing. Doesn't matter if you've had that wall since forever... He somehow finds a way to get inside, and before you know it, its like he was always there."

Lisbeth knew of course. Kirito had come along so suddenly and as someone she would have disregarded easily if he did not initiate the conversation. She did indeed have walls around her person ever since the start of the game, a necessity given the situation. Wary of the other players, but wanting to help, she really had no one to rely on in the beginning. Yet he came to her, and after the first day he was already at the forefront of her thoughts. Someone who she knew could be relied on without fail.

"Yea. I know." Lisbeth muttered. "That boy is truly something."

"Quite dense though, hehe." Argo shared a quiet laugh with Lisbeth. "He was actually the first person to try and get to know me..." Argo thought back to their first meeting, when they were both beta testers. "Didn't really care about the few information I had gathered, but wanted to know why I was an information broker rather than a player."

Lisbeth suddenly looked ashamed, as she had often conversed with Argo but it was only about business. "I'm sorry, I wa-"

"It's okay Lis-chan, I don't blame people for not wanting to know me. My personality can be a bit daunting I know." It was an understatement of course, as her personality had made her quite a bit of enemies during the beta. She was often brash and unyielding, seeking to make a profit on what others thought should be free. "I have a good memory, one of the reasons why I enjoy being an information broker. Being able to remember precise numbers has always been one of my specialties... but its hard to connect with people when they only know you for your memory." Argo remembered how often people in her class simply used her as a calculator or often disregarded her as a normal student. People always envied those with talent of course, and that was the main reason she had developed her brash and chipper personality; as a way of brushing off the hate and envy or her peers.

She didn't know why she was telling Lisbeth this, but seeing the understanding in the other girls eyes gave her a sense of relief.

"Kirito... he was different." From the moment she had met his eyes, Argo had known there was something special about him. Not in a physical sense of course as his Avatar was some generic model, but in his aura. The way he held himself and regarded others was something that she immediately felt a connection to. "When he asked me why I was an information broker, I simply gave him an excuse that I wanted to make a lot of col. But when I looked into his eyes I could tell he didn't believe me."

Lisbeth listened with rapt attention, she felt touched that Argo would choose to share this with her of all people.

"So he came back... frequently too. After each boss fight or when it was convenient, he visited me. Sometimes he required a service, other times he didn't, but every time he made sure to just talk to me." She remembered back then, she had thought he was just an annoying boy that was probably attracted to her avatar. "Before I knew it though, I started to look forward to his visits. Even getting sad when he was gone for a week." She remembered that week vividly, of looking forward to logging on and seeing that strangely unique boy. "I was even mad at him for apologizing when he came back on, saying he had to attend a special event out of town."

Argo closed her eyes in deep thought, fondly remembering the apologetic face on Kirito. Even though he had used a different avatar, the expressions were the same as his real face.

"When the beta was nearing the end, and he had become my only friend in that game, I asked him... 'Why?' 'Why did you befriend someone like me?'" Argo smiled at the memory. "He looked at me, and without a single moment of hesitation simply said. 'Because you were lonely.'"

Lisbeth smiled widely as Argo finished her story. It sounded so much like Kirito, yet she found the story sad in a way. Regarding the girl in front of her, without her excitable exterior and constant teasing, she realized that Argo was just another girl that kept all of her troubles inside.

Reaching out with one hand, Lisbeth grasped the other girls hand firmly in a reassuring grip. "Argo-chan..."

"Thank you for listening to my story Lis-chan." The mousy girl was giving her a friendly smile that she returned. Lisbeth decided from then on to do her best to become her friend, something that she should have done from the start.

The two girls fell into companionable silence and Lisbeth almost fell asleep when she heard Argo's last murmur.

"...still not giving up on Kiri-bou..."

She sighed in exasperation, a smile on her sleeping face.

* * *

"Oh my..."

"Fufufuu~"

"Oooh~"

"Awww, look at how his mouth is slightly opened!"

There was one flaw in SAO that was relatively unknown for the moment. It occurred when a user went to sleep, and was likely not even thought deeply upon by the creator. When a player slept, their in-game body was effectively dead to the world. No physical or aural senses could reach the player unless it was pre-programmed by the player in a way such as an alarm clock or system warning. A flaw that would surely be exploited by malevolent players, but in this case it made for a humorous situation.

Kirito had fallen asleep on the couch utterly exhausted, stopping only to change into more comfortable clothing before falling asleep with no blanket. Using his arms as a pillow case, he had fallen asleep curled up. His sleeping face made quite an innocent expression as his mouth hung open slightly, and as he muttered something incoherent in his sleep the girls let out a collective 'awwww'.

"Is there anyway to take a picture of this?"

The group of girls all turned to stare at Asuna, who blushed brightly under the intensity of their stares. "F-for blackmailing purposes!"

Nodding sagely, Argo decided not to tease the girl further. "There is, but its quite expensive, and won't be available until floor five or so."

The girls let out sighs of disappointment as they could not capture this incredibly adorable moment. None more so than Argo, who was already thinking of all the money she could receive from selling such a picture. Kirito was particularly popular amongst the ladies after all, if only for his pretty boy looks.

It was a very short while when the clock suddenly hit 8:00 am that Kirito suddenly jerked up, surprising the four girls who were examining his sleeping body rather thoroughly. Rubbing his eyes to get the sleep out, he blinked once, then twice as he took in the sight of four girls looking everywhere but at him.

"What is it?" He yawned aloud, tilting his head to the side as they avoided his stares.

"Um, breakfast?" Offered a timid Lisbeth.

"Oh." Kirito blinked before gesturing to the kitchen. "There should be some food in there by default, although I don't have any in the «Cooking Skill» so it will be just toast I think."

The girls bid a hasty retreat into the kitchen area, and as Kirito continued to rub sleep out of his eyes he wondered what had happened during his sleep.

* * *

"Ready?"

After eating the rather hearty breakfast of eggs and toast that could be prepared with no cooking skill, the group had geared up to go for another training session. Kirito had decided after the progress from yesterday, that the group was ready for something harder.

In a typical MMO, the majority of the experience came from quests, and in SAO that would be correct. However, given the situation the players found themselves in, most found it easier and safer to avoid questing altogether given the unknown variables that typically popped up. For example, the two most rewarding quests on the first floor required the players to venture off into a zone and defeat the boss there. Being at level 6, the mini-boss would usually not be hard for a normal party of 6, but even with the information available from beta testers, the risks were not worth the reward.

With Kirito being at level 9, Asuna and Argo at level 7, Lisbeth at 5, and Silica at 4, he was confident of their success rate. The girls, barring argo, were rather unsure, but decided to put their trust in Kirito and Argo; the two beta testers that had mastered the first floor easily.

"Yeah."

"Yep."

Receiving confirmation or nods from the girls, Kirito led the way to the entrance of the particular quest that he wanted to attempt. Located at the very edge of the map, the dungeon was called «The Viridi Forest», a forest dungeon that required a quest and a party to enter. In the beta, Kirito had done this particular dungeon rather easily with a group of randoms and was rather sure of their success if it was the same during the beta.

"Did you girls have a good sleep?"

His seemingly innocent question seemed to bring blushes on both Argo and Lisbeth's faces, causing him and the rest of the girls to stare at them in question.

"Y-yea! The beds were really soft." Lisbeth squeaked.

"Yup, really soft, would have been better if I had another _pillow_." Argo smirked, which Kirito pointedly ignored.

Asuna and Silica shared a smile as they had connected during their stay, Asuna seeing the younger girl as a cute sister that she never had, and Silica looking up to the graceful fencer.

"Very good, best sleep I've ever had"

"Yea! way better than the beds at the church."

Kirito smiled, as he had hoped his sacrifice would not be in vain. He missed those beds rather dearly, having taken to taking naps in them during the beta despite the fact that it was quite unusual to sleep in a VR game.

"I'm glad... I wished I had a bed too." He muttered.

The girls all pointedly looked away from him, as they did not want to swap their beds for lumpy couches after the amazing night they just had.

Kirito sighed sadly.

* * *

"Keep your eyes open!"

"KYAHH~ I CANT!"

Kirito watched on as Silica ran away from a rather large beetle in a familiar comical fashion. She had closed her eyes and seemed to abandon all form as she ran for her life. He palmed his face in exasperation as she seemingly tripped on a root and fell to the ground. Silica had been doing wonderfully along the way, destroying the stump type mobs with ease, but as soon as they ran into the «Forest Beetle», she had frozen up at the extremely large bug.

"KIRITO~"

Stepping directly in front of the frightened girl, his hands moved in a familiar pattern as he executed a sword skill; «Amplifying Strike». His sword glowed blue as it struck the beetle directly between the eyes. The large bug flinched back, and made a chattering noise as it readied to strike him with its large horn.

"Switch!"

Instantly, the lithe figure of Asuna leapt in front of him and her thin rapier flew into the air with a practiced motion. The strike pierced the same area he had hit, and the bug exploded into polygons, causing Silica to sigh in relief.

Since the «Forest Beetle» mob was unique to this dungeon, they received a buff that made their armour especially hard to pierce, making their monster level of 5 into a more realistic value of 7. During the beta, everyone had noted that they took extra damage when struck directly between the eyes. Kirito took advantage of this by using a party-type sword skill; «Amplifying Strike» which weakened the area he struck considerably. By doing this, the next blow would effectively be tripled, if not quadrupled in damage.

The only drawback was that you had to take into consideration the skill of your teammates, since if they couldn't hit the same area as you, then the attack was wasted. The effective area was also quite small for the next strike to count. Therefore, he was training Asuna who had a pierce type weapon to follow up his sword skill, making a rather effective combo.

Looking on as Asuna comforted the distressed younger girl, he was surprised at just how talented the girl was. Even though she said she had no MMO or fencing background, she still wielded her weapon with a familiarity that many experts would envy. It seemed that he had an incredible amount of talent in this party.

Slightly off to the side was where Lisbeth and Argo were in tandem, seemingly dancing around another «Forest Beetle». It was an interesting sight to be sure, Argo dashing in and out of the beetle's attacks while Lisbeth charged up a rather devastating sword skill. She brought down her large mace in a fury and smashed the beetle directly on its horn. The dazed beetle barely had a chance to recover before Argo used a claw sword skill «Dark Fury», a 6-hit combo that destroyed the monster with ease.

He smiled as the two girls cheered and gave each other a high five, silently wondering when the two had gotten so close.

-CLICK-

An ominous sound rung through the small forest clearing, causing the group to grow still. Staring at the source of the sound they found it coming from the abnormally huge tree that was in front of them. The tree was a dark green, and was mostly dead, but a short distance from the ground was a rather large hole, indicating that the tree was hollow. Kirito and Argo shared a look, and immediately knew that was where the boss would be coming from. It had changed slightly from the beta, as the boss was previously simply sitting in the middle of the clearing.

-CLACK-

Multiple sounds sounded out of the hole in the large tree, sending shivers down Silica's spine.

"D-don't tell me..."

A tremendously large horn popped out of the hole first, causing Silica to squeek. Following the horn, was the chitinous body of the boss, «Lituus the Forest Demon».

"Calm down Silica." Kirito whispered softly to the girl as the rest of the group assembled around him. "Remember what we planned."

The small girl gulped, bringing up her shield and short sword, ducking her head behind her shield. Even though they had discussed in length all of the potential situations involving the boss, they hadn't told her how scary it looked. Towering at the height of a small house, with the horn forming a good amount of its weight, the gigantic boss beetle was a scary sight to the younger girl.

All of a sudden the boss roared, and dashed towards them.

"Scatter!"

With a loud "Eep!" Silica was tugged along with Asuna as they jumped away from the area the boss was charging towards.

Kirito stared down the ominous horn that would have crushed him with a single strike if this were anything like reality. Instead, a direct hit would bring him down to low health and send him flying... If he got hit that is. Waiting until the last possible moment, Kirito _leaped_ over the boss, clearing the large body in a single jump. The boss skidded to a slow stop, barely avoiding crashing into the trees.

"Now!"

At his call, the girls rushed under the boss and unleashed a fury of attacks on the unprotected underbelly of the beetle. It screeched a terrifying tone and tried to retaliate to no avail - it's large horns could not reach the girls underneath him. As it swung its horns around in desperation, the girls continued unleashing their arsenal of attacks, even the terrified Silica who followed their lead despite her fear.

"Stop!"

At once, the girls stopped their attack, running away from the beetle and back to Kirito's side. In the beta when the health bars of the beetle was depleted, it unlocked the ability to snap its horns at the players, as well as a small jumping ability. The players would then have to take turns dodging the fast horns while having the others slowly chip away at its health.

"Ki-bou..."

The beetle decided to cruelly mock their supposedly advantageous knowledge as its back suddenly _opened_ revealing a pair of smooth wings.

"Uhm..."

The girls all looked up in fear as the boss rose slowly up the air, screeching all the while. They all widened their eyes in shock as it suddenly dove towards them.

"SCATTER!"

His words shook them out of their shell-shocked state and they scrambled out of the path of the dive. Kirito as always stood resolutely in the path of the boss, attracting its attention. He suddenly cursed the creator of this game.

"_What's the point of being in the beta if nothings the same!"_

Even as he cursed in his mind, he readied himself for the boss. At this angle and speed, there was no way he could simply leap out of range in time. Therefore he ran with all his might to the edge of the trees. He couldn't simply leap into the treeline as that would leave the girls open to attack. A plan quickly formulated into his mind as he ran to a particularly tree.

When he had entered the area, he had immediately noticed something had changed, the clearing retained the same shape with the addition of one thing. Spread near the edges were «Dead Trees», a particular type of tree that had very low durability and was cuttable. Although gathering wood wasn't valuable, there was still some use in professions. The fact that you could cut down certain trees was something many beta testers had felt oddly out of place in the game since you could just buy wood off npcs at a marginal price.

Durability in SAO was simple, once an item fell to 0 durability it would break, and SAO had entire fields that were breakable much to the delight of the playerbase. Many were excited for the potential feature of building up your own area for guilds or making your own towns. Seeing as SAO was now a death game, the durability of everything was just another feature that players glimpsed over.

Rapidly reaching the rather large tree, he climbed it through sheer speed alone before reaching the halfway point where he stabbed his sword into the tree, gripping onto his position desperately.

"KIRITO!"

Multiple voices of concern screamed through the air, and Kirito hoped his idea would work. Not a moment later, the boss came screeching towards his position on the tree, and at the last second Kirito let go of his grip on the sword causing him to drop down.

-CRACK-

The sound of breaking wood along with the a screech of pain from the boss met Kirito's ears and he let out of sigh of relief as he jumped away from the rapidly falling tree and boss. The boss had fell onto its back, legs in the air waving helplessly as it continued to screech. The tree's momentum had tipped the flying bug to tip over onto its back.

Meeting the eyes of his shocked party members, Kirito rose an eyebrow as if asking 'what are you waiting for?'.

"GO!"

Excited shouts met his as the entire party jumped onto the boss's vulnerable stomach, and Kirito joined them momentarily as he equipped his offhand sword to temporarily replace his lost one. Loud cries and the glowing of sword skills surrounded the clearing for a few excited moments before the large beetle glowed white and dispersed in a scattering of polygons.

«Congratulations! You have completed the quest: Lord of the Forest»

The group yelped as they all landed in a heap due to their high position atop of the beetle. Huffing in exhaustion they all shared a look as they seemingly collapsed onto the floor together.

"YES!"

Kirito closed his eyes and smiled in contentment as he listened to the cheers of the girls. There was no doubt in his mind that the first floor boss would be cleared.

* * *

Staring across at the rows of people that had gathered at the intended area, Kirito noted that everyone had shown up.

Defeating the «First Boss».

Yesterday's final meeting had been tense at the beginning as many still held lingering resentment towards him. Those that seemed discontent with him had banded under a player named Diabel, the same blue-haired player from the last meeting. He seemed to garner lots of trust from the upset players, and Kirito did not why.

Yet, every single one from the previous meeting had shown up intending to help, and Kirito would not turn away any of them... even if he couldn't trust them. Looking into the eyes of his most vocal hater, a player he now knew as Kibaou, he decided to pay close attention to that players particular actions.

Since there were many that was unsatisfied with him leading the party, he had conceded the leading role to Diabel. There were many protests, coming loudly from Asuna and Lisbeth, and surprisingly from the rest of the crowd. Agil who had shown up, had glared the ones that were smiling down into the ground, something that he was silently satisfied about.

Diabel accepted the role reluctantly, at least on the outside, appearing to be humble and thankful for the chance. Most of the players were fine with his lead since he had been a very vocal frontliner, often leading the leveling parties. Kirito couldn't help but frown as he suspected there was an ulterior motive to the charismatic player, but really couldn't voice any of his thoughts due to being outnumbered. It was foolish after all to split the group effectively in half for what Kirito knew to be a problem of ego.

Finishing his scan of the players that had arrived in front of the boss door, he ignored the glaring Kibaou in favour of checking over his party.

His party. Something that he still held lingering surprise over, especially considering how well they had worked together. Over the last few days prior to the final boss meeting, they had finished the other dungeon and successfully cleared most of the mobs such that they could effectively farm the «Dire Wolf» mob. It was slightly humorous that the wolves targeted Silica each time.

Silica had calmed down significantly since the start of the training, showing remarkable growth from a newbie to a level 8 clearer. She was still hesitant at times, looking to him or the others for approval. The most important thing was that she no longer feared the monsters, toning her screams and cries to mere flinches. She had also confided that she trusted the party with her life, something that had touched Kirito considerably, but also brought a slight pain to his heart. He hoped he never disappointed her trust.

Asuna had reached level 10 the other day along with Argo, and had also grown readily into her role. As the only person capable of chaining with him, they had practiced a good amount so that she could safely fight beside him. Pierce type weapons had high critical hit chances, and as long as Kirito identified the weak points for her, Asuna could clear things almost as fast as him. He often wished he could use sword skills while dual-wielding since his movements were slightly hindered when he only used one sword. The most important thing in his opinion however was that Asuna had opened up completely to the group. She smiled and laughed, and even teased... a far cry from the initial state he had found her in.

Lisbeth had reached level 9 and had gained a newfound confidence that he was glad to see. She was no longer hesitant when striking out with her large mace, and he found that she was even commanding at times. Along the way they had pooled their resources together and Lisbeth had upgraded all of their weapons to the best of her ability, something they were very grateful for. She also worked surprisingly well with Argo, seemingly in tandem with the mousy girl.

Argo was someone that also changed greatly, much to Kirito's shock. Even though he had knew her ever since the beta, during the week that they had partied he had seen her _laugh_, and not in a teasing manner, but out of sheer happiness. She also tried to tone down her teasing, although Kirito noticed that she now reserved the majority of her teasing for him, much to his chagrin. He was happy for the lonely girl that had finally connected with other people, a fact that he knew was hypocritical of him.

Himself... he had changed of course, being with four rather unique girls would do that to anyone. Having to adjust his combat style to suit the party, he found that he rather liked the feeling of being relied on. Similar to the feeling he received when Suguha always looked for his approval, he had reluctantly accepted the role of leadership. The girls put all of their trust in him, and in turn he tried desperately to never let them down.

"Alright, since everybody has arrived lets just go over the roles briefly."

Kirito hid a grin as his party members glared at the speaker. Although they had accepted reluctantly, they still believed that he was the best possible leader. Rather flattering to have four cute girls backing him up. Not flattering, however was to have most of the males glaring enviously at his party.

"As the leader of this raid group, I will be taking the lead in attacking the boss, along with these groups." He pointed at several groups, most of them being the ones that resented Kirito. "Since I feel that we are the most equipped groups, myself being level 10 of course."

Some of the groups blinked in surprise at his high level, and Kirito wanted to raise a hand petulantly and state that he was level 12, and his party members were likely above any of the others. He held his tongue of course as Diabel continued his talk.

"The rest of you will have the job of keeping the «Kobold Sentinels» off of the main attacking group. Of course, we will call for swaps when we need to heal or rest." At this he nodded to Kirito's group, obviously knowing that his group was equally if not greater than the strength of his. "Everyone understand?"

No one answered, most of them nervously last checking everything before the boss fight. Your actual lives were on the line after all.

"Very well, lets begin."

He led the group to the door and opened it smoothly, the large gates ominously creaked open revealing the boss room. Many of the players gulped and shivered in anticipation as there really was no turning back now.

"GO!"

With a shout, Diabel led the charge towards the huge boss; «Illfang the Kobold Lord», and Kirito was surprised as none of his party members faltered alongside him. Reaching the boss, the group held a collective breath as Diabel landed a sword skill solidly onto the front of the boss, and breathed in relief as he deftly dodged the retaliatory strike. His group members immediately started attacking from the side, dropping the boss's health rather steadily.

"Take care of the sentinels!"

Taking that as his cue, Kirito stepped forward alongside the girls as they rushed towards the multitude of guards that were summoned. "Asuna with me."

The girls nodded before breaking off, with the other group lead by Argo. The two small groups immediately targeted their own separate sentinel before starting their offense. The other scattered parties followed their lead as they also targeted a sentinel.

Eyeing the ugly creature in front of him Kirito expertly handled his main sword and used «Horizontal», sending a swift strike across the monster's belly. Immediately dodging to the right, he did not have to say a word as Asuna picked up his pace and sent a «Straight» into the mobs left flank. The poor creature did not understand what to attack as it was swiftly attacked from both sides. Kirito started rotating clockwise while striking with fast slashes and low-cooldown sword skills. Asuna likewise did the same thing, causing them to destroy the monster in a manoeuvre that argo called 'Kirito and Asuna's duet' much to their embarrassment. But to the players who paused to take in the amazing technique, they couldn't help but marvel at the grace and fluidity the two showed.

Argo, along with Lisbeth and SIlica were also impressive in their own right. Amazingly, Silica had been placed in front where she darted in and out, blocking blows with a bright green shield. The shield **[Forest Lid]; **a rare reward from the beetle boss enabled her to reflect a portion of the damage back to her attacker, a unique ability that proved to be extremely helpful as Silica could tank the blows much better than the other shield users. It also helped that whenever the Sentinel tried to charge up for a smash or special skill, Lisbeth used a sword skill to make the mob flinch, effectively interrupting any large damage. With Silica and Lisbeth occupying all of the Sentinel's attention, Argo served as the damage dealer, literally shredding the Sentinel with her rapid claw attacks with no regard since all of the attention was off of her.

The groups that were not currently engaged in a battle couldn't help but watch in awe at the skills of the party, and couldn't help but wonder why they were not the ones currently engaging the boss.

"More Sentinels!"

The voice of Diabel shocked most of the groups into action as a great many of the guards appeared this time. Each group finally occupied in clearing one, determined to prove their worth.

Kirito glanced down at the second one that he and Asuna had taken down and nodded towards the one that Argo had targeted. They each dashed towards their party members, and quickly helped dispatch the Sentinel. The group shared a moment of reprieve as they could see the other groups were handing their own Sentinels fine, albeit with some difficulty.

"Get back!"

This time all eyes looked towards the centre where the boss had collapsed with all of its health bars down. It was seemingly breathing deeply, clutching at the last remains of its health. All eyes suddenly widened as Diabel suddenly let out a loud roar before charging the downed boss. Everyone looked on in shock as Diabel charged directly at the boss even though Kirito had told everyone to watch out for the transitional stage. The blue-haired sent him a small smirk before focusing his attention on the recovering boss.

"_You fool!"_

The boss suddenly looked up with its red eyes gleaming, pulling out a nodachi, Kirito felt grim as he realized any information from the beta was sorely outdated. Grimacing, he dashed towards the boss hoping he wasn't too late.

The boss roared and swung out with his sword in a ferocious overhead swing and connected viciously with Diabel who bounced off the ground. The group watched stricken with shock as the boss swiped diagonally connecting once more with the player in the air, and reared back for a final hit to finish the deadly combo.

Right before the sword connected, they watched as a figure leapt in front of the attack and stalled in the air for a good second before they were both blown back from the force.

"KIRITO!"

He recognized the concerned voices of his party members immediately, and sat up slowly, seeing that his HP had fallen into the low orange range. The only reason he didn't take more damage was because he had met the boss's sword with his own sword skill, cancelling it out very slightly.

"You idiot..." He said slowly, eyeing the fallen body of Diabel who lied wide-eyed on the floor. "Was the last-hit worth that much to you?!"

Turning his head to stare at him, Diabel chuckled mirthlessly. "I really was an idiot... take care of them for me..."

Diabel, whose HP was falling rapidly knew that his time was up. He had wanted to prove something today... that he was better than the player in front of him. Someone who he had seen from the beta as unstoppable. He alone had recognized the potential in the player known as 'Kirito' and had wanted to be recognized too. It seemed that his pride and ego had overshadowed his sense... something that he deeply regretted.

"You're not dead you fool."

His voice caused Diabel to double-take when he noticed that his HP has stopped depleting, stopping at a measly 2 points...

Kirito got up slowly, noting that the boss had surprisingly not charged anyone so far. All of the raid members stared at him, but he paid them no mind as the girls surrounded him.

"Are you alright?!" Lisbeth shouted into his ear.

"Kirito..."

"Not cool Ki-bou."

"..."

He looked at them and realized that they were deeply affected by his potential death, and he struggled to meet their eyes. "I'm sorry." There was no time for a more heartfelt apology though. "Will you girls help me?"

Seeing the determined nods, he settled into a battle stance.

"Stay and watch. No one needs to die."

At Kirito's words, Diabel collapsed onto himself, shaking due to the magnitude of what he had just done. His group members rushed him, trying to check on his status but he only stared resolutely at Kirito's back.

Dashing right in front of the boss, Kirito opened up with a vicious «Vertical» that left a red line straight up the boss's front, causing it to roar in anger. Before the boss could even retaliate with a swift slash, Lisbeth jumped up to plate with a loud yell.

"HYAH!"

The blue glow of her «Heavy Strike» flew threw the air as the powerful skill landed directly across the bosses cheeks. The amount of damage triggered a brief stun to the boss, and the rest of the party took that as the cue to jump in, unleashing every cool down they had onto the boss. It was when the boss roared and sent them all flying with a spinning skill that woke the majority of the players up.

Agil in particular growled loudly. "Come on you wimps, there's a bunch of girls fighting while we sit here gawping like idiots." Charging in and landing a similar «Heavy Strike» he led the way as players suddenly woke up from their trance.

Everyone charged the boss in a renewed frenzy, creating an incredible light show of sword skills. Yet once again, everyone was blasted away with a twirl, and most of them were reluctant to charge again as most of their health bars approached dangerous levels.

"Asuna, Argo lets dance."

Kirito led the charge once more, this time not staying in place long after he left a swift slash, Asuna taking his place fell into his rhythm, leading the way for Argo to step in. A three way _tornado_ of attacks rained down on the boss who struggled to get a hit on a single target, none of them staying in the same place for more than a moment.

It was on the fourth rotation that the boss shifted into the same stance that would inevitably send them all spinning once more. To the shock of the onlookers however, Lisbeth and Silica jumped in at the last second, unleashing all of their remaining cool downs.

The boss glowed white, and with a loud roar its body disintegrated.

«Congratulations!»

The entire boss chamber shook with the cheers of the players who were beyond elated to have cleared the first boss without a casualty.

Kirito, amidst the cheers of the girls had only a content smile on his face. He looked across the room at all of the players who had risked their lives and felt _proud_. At this rate, clearing the other floors would finally be possible.

Locking eyes with a sad-faced Diabel, Kirito gave him a single nod, to which the blue-haired one acknowledged with a short bow.

* * *

"Uwahh~"

The girls let out a sigh of contentment as they walked out onto the second floor for the first time. Vast valleys and hilltops greeted them, along with the sweet scent of fresh grass that seemed rampant. Indeed, covering most of the land as far as they could see was lush and incredibly green grass.

"Just like the beta huh?" Kirito muttered. Argo beside him hummed an agreement, already categorizing the most profitable information about this current floor in her head.

"The town is just right over there." He pointed, and the girls followed his finger to see a large flat-topped mountain with a large entrance. It seemed that the town would be inside of the mountain. "The monster levels here shouldn't be much different from the first floor dungeons, so I'm sure you girls will be fine."

Besides him Asuna crossed her arm curtly. "Why are you telling us this like you're planning on leaving?"

At her glare Kirito visibly shivered. "B-but-"

"No buts!" Silica shouted. "You can't leave us Kirito-kun."

Her adorable pout was infectious, but Kirito tried to remain strong. "I don't want to endanger any of you..." He muttered.

The girls all shared an exasperated look.

"Typical Kirito..." Asuna sighed. "So focused on protecting others, yet you forget about yourself."

"Yea! Who will be there to look after you if we separate?" Lisbeth asked, causing the other girls to nod in agreement.

Kirito felt an odd warmth spread through him as he felt all of their concern. Looking away, he couldn't help a small smile that broke out.

"A guild... We should form a guild." The group all stared at a excited Argo, who was rubbing her chin in thought. "We can all work together, and keep track of Ki-bou at the same time!"

The girls all shared a look. "Okay."

"W-wait." He started to say, but was met by four unyielding glares. "Okay..."

"And we have to call it the Royal Harem! or maybe Royal Concubines, or even the Royal Bedwarmers!"

They all collectively stared at Argo, who tilted her head to the side cutely. "No?"

"NO!"

Kirito palmed his face in despair. "And why is there always 'Royal' in there?"

Argo blinked and looked at him as if it was obvious. "Because you are going to be the leader of course."

"What!"

The girls all nodded in acceptance, seemingly accepting her explanation without question.

"W-wait, just like that?!"

Ignoring him, they started whispering to each other in a huddle and Kirito felt oddly left out. Pouting petulantly he suddenly felt a shiver run down his spine as they finished conversing and came out of the huddle with _smiles on their faces._

"Then its settled. We will be called 'Royal Swords'."

* * *

**A/N: 13k words... I'm at a lost. **

**I wanted to split this chapter into two at first after seeing how long it ran, but given the situation I didn't want to dedicate a whole chapter to the first floor boss fight. Which btw, I feel is done rather poorly in the Anime. In the novels, they state that the raid had 44 members, while in the anime there was only maybe 20? Ah well, its obvious due to the budget, but it would've been amazing to see a full raid fight unleashing sword skills. **

**As always, thanks very much for the reviews everybody. I'm really surprised how many of you liked this story, and especially at those who said my writing skills were really good, since I feel I'm merely adequate. Nonetheless, you are all awesome. **

**About this chapter, mostly interaction between Kirito and the girls, and some backstory on Lisbeth and Argo. It's pretty hard to write characterizations for five characters at once especially since you don't have backstory on Lisbeth/Silica/Argo, but its pretty interesting so far. **

**Training sessions with Silica are always funny, was kind of hard to write, but I hope you guys enjoyed it. **

**With the first boss finally out of the way, I can finally begin to flesh out Kirito's character, and on why he will be called «Prince» if its not obvious already. Feel free to tell me anything you disliked/liked in this chapter. **

**Next chapter will most likely NOT be this long. Taking time procrastinating from school to type a whole chapter is rather time consuming. (But then again, I would be wasting that time doing nothing anyways. =P.) Blame any grammatical mistakes on being only me, and mostly writing everything in one session.**

**I hoped you enjoyed this chapter.**

**Next Chapter: The Rumoured**


	4. Chapter 4 The Rumoured

"_Kirigaya-san, visiting hours are over..."_

_The soft, apologetic voice of the nurse served to bring her back to reality. Suguha who had been sitting besides the prone body of her brother, looked up at the nurse with painful eyes. _

"_Can I have a few more minutes?"_

_The nurse smiled sadly. "Of course dear, I'll be back in awhile." _

_Closing the door, the nurse felt her heart go out to the poor girl in the room. This SAO tragedy had been a shock to everybody since it had affected mainly children. Grieving mothers and family members had all taken it upon themselves to visit as often as they could. The heart-wrenching scenes of families being notified of their loved ones death was a somewhat regular occurrence these days._

_Suguha who had visited every day of the week near the start had been forced by her parents to visit only once a week as they knew the situation would not be resolved anytime soon. They also knew just how close Suguha was to Kazuto, and despite feeling guilty at forcing her to resume her life, they knew that Kazuto would not want Suguha to waste away at his side._

"_Onii-chan..." She whispered, gripping his cold hands tightly. The form of her most precious person laid prone on the hospital bed, and she couldn't help but feel anger at the piece of machinery that surrounded his head. The usually strong figure of her brother was now pale and unnatural - a result of the nutrients used by the hospital. She often wondered why her brother had been so into SAO, being incredibly excited for the official launch._

_And yet..._

_The days on the calendar had counted down, and with each passing day Suguha struggled with the feeling of helplessness. As it approached Christmas, the thought that Kazuto has been trapped for nearly two months haunted her. Her ever reliable brother was trapped in a death game created by a madman, and yet when he needed her the most, she could do nothing._

_She recalled vaguely that Kazuto had promised to spend extra time with her during the holidays, something that they had rarely done lately. Since their parents were usually always busy with work, they had little time to celebrate even during the holidays. Kazuto and Suguha never minded, content to spend most of the time with each other, and celebrating with the family on the rare days they could. _

_Kazuto always kept his word, never failing to keep a promise despite how inane or troublesome it was._

"_You promised Onii-chan..."_

* * *

Kirito traversed the snow covered forest expertly, having been here multiple times before. The forests on the first floor was something that was incredibly familiar to him after all, having cleared the area multiple times already. His black-clad form was silent and as he moved through the forest, he met no resistance. Being at a rather formidable level of 19, the mobs shied away from him, and the ones that stayed were swiftly dispatched in a single slash.

December 20th, 2022.

A week in which the majority of the world would be celebrating as a holiday, counting the days until Christmas. For Kirito who was trapped in a death game along with 10,000 other players, celebrating was not something that was on his mind. Old habits died hard however, and the reason he was searching through the level 1 forest was because of his MMO sense.

Something that was a custom in every MMO was the creation of exclusive content during special times of the year, often easter eggs that would be different every year. In SAO it was no different, the creator having talked in depth about how the world would change itself to suit the season. He wasn't simply talking about the weather which was quite realistic, but the fact that the NPCs changed and some of the mobs also changed.

It affected almost every floor, and players had wondered at the sheer scale of the changes that a seasonal event would bring. Having been cruelly trapped inside the game for almost two months has left players in a rather non-cheerful mood however. It was to be expected after all, Christmas was a time that was spent with family. Being the first Christmas in which they were completely alone, many could be seen with solemn looks on their faces.

A very slight movement amongst the snow caused Kirito to stop and carefully scan his surroundings. His eyes immediately finding the source of the disturbance; a particular cute rabbit. The bunny mob was particularly adorable with a small santa hat and dressed in what seemed to be a miniature rabbit-sized tuxedo. His eyes gleamed in anticipation, hands steadily reaching down for a throwing dagger.

The mob «Holiday Rabbit» was something that only appeared during the christmas season on select floors of Aincrad. It boasted an incredibly low spawn chance, with each floor having only a handful of the rabbits. What was so special about the monster besides its spawn chance was the exclusive holiday drops that it contained. Being a level 1 mob with 1 health point, its only advantage was its supreme agility. If you failed to destroy it in one hit then you were doomed as you would never be able to catch it again.

His dagger soared through the air with impressive speed.

The sound of a squeak and polygons dispersing met his ears, and Kirito smiled in satisfaction. Besides the small chance of dropping an extremely rare item like a ring or other accessories, the rabbits always dropped at least one special drop. For Kirito who had been hunting the rabbits steadily throughout the morning, he was rather surprised that this rabbit contained two drops for him.

**[Santa Hat] x1**

**[Christmas Chocolate] x2**

Kirito manipulated his inventory to examine the item in detail, it seemed it was a rare drop after all. Upon looking at the stats however, he was disappointed to see that it was merely an accessory item, having no beneficial stats. It was still rare though, and Kirito wondered how much col he could make by selling it. A sudden thought struck him, and he grinned, storing the hat into his inventory. There was a much better use for the hat after all.

Stretching absently, he decided it was time to head back for a late brunch, something he and the girls had decided upon. With the holiday season many did not have the inspiration to clear the front lines anymore. Therefore it was decided upon by most of the clearers to take a week break - the very first break to many of them.

It was to be expected after all, the clearers had been working non-stop to clear the floors ever since that dramatic first boss battle. Along the way, most of the resentment had been buried in favour of working toward the goal of beating this game. He had been glad to see everyone putting aside their differences to work together, and despite the fact that not everyone wanted to volunteer for boss fights, the general atmosphere was one of comradery.

His group, or guild rather, was one of the few constants at the boss battles, always taking the lead in battle and leading the way. Along the way, they had proved to the players that they were worthy of respect, and even those who did not like them personally held their tongue in regards to his decisions. Especially since the creation of their guild on the third floor; where the guild creation hall was found. They had started to build a rather noticeable reputation, and most of it was centered on Kirito, much to his exasperation.

The «Royal Swords», rumoured to be the strongest guild in SAO, even though there were only a handful of other guilds to compare to. Lead by the strongest swordsman, and consisting of the strongest and cutest girl players, the guild had a rather interesting reputation about it. If only they stopped believing all of the ridiculous rumours that had started since the first floor, like the rumour that he was a girl too, or the one where they thought he was an npc in disguise, and his all time hated rumour was the one where he was the villainous playboy who surrounded himself with a harem of cute girls. He wanted to strangle whoever started those rumours, and was thankful to the fact that most of the regular players could not put his face to those rumours.

Shaking his head, he tried to avoid thinking of the ridiculous situation that seemed to be his reputation. Since despite his misgivings, he found being with his guild something that he would not change for the world. For each member of his guild had found a place in his heart, and he had vowed to see this game cleared for each of their sakes.

Clearing the forest and arriving onto the main road, Kirito was hit with a sense of nostalgia as he scanned the first floor fields. It was this area that he had advanced through during the first week, and he found it hard to associate that reckless solo player with the current him. He had been selfish in the beginning, advancing through the floor believing that making himself strong would be a better way of helping others. Believing that being in a group would slow him down, secretly hiding the fact that he was afraid of being responsible for the lives of other players.

Now though... having leveled with his party members for a month, he knew he was wrong. The feeling of fear was still there, but muted by the sense of strength that the group gave him. Knowing that they believed he would protect them no matter what, and knowing that they would do the same for him had made them strong. Their teamwork was solidified, and their trust in him allowed him to lead without hesitation.

Walking along the road, he was surprised to see a group of players leveling on the level 3 wolves to his left. They were the first players he had seen on the first floor actually leveling, and he silently applauded their courage. Even after almost two months, there were still players that lingered in the Starting City after all. Some had ventured onto the other cities that had been unlocked by the clearers, but even then they remained at level 1. A waste in his opinion, but at least they were venturing out of the first floor.

Watching the group for a while, one player caught his eye in particular. The figure was cloaked in a hood of white so he couldn't distinguish any details. But what had caught his attention was the strangely familiar way that the figure wielded his or her weapon. A rather standard issue spear was held in her hand, but instead of wielding it with both hands to thrust or swing, it was over the shoulder in a throwing motion.

In SAO, the physics of the game was rather sound, only being broken by player skills, therefore if you threw a rather pointed object like a spear at a mob, the potential for high damage was there. It wasn't efficient however as if you missed, you were effectively helpless until you recovered your main weapon, the system wouldn't allow you to replace your main hand because it knew you had thrown it. Only with swords were you allowed to equip another weapon onto your main hand, the system would assume you were trying to dual-wield.

Seeing the figure throw the spear fluidly caused him to blink in surprise as the weapon flew through the air gracefully. It stabbed through the wolf mob with ease, exploding the poor monster into polygons. Admiring the players aim, he silently praised the unorthodox way of killing the wolf. It was always great to see innovation, and especially when it was very effective.

Smiling as he headed back onto the main road, Kirito felt oddly elated at what he had seen. It seemed there were many more talented players in this death game.

* * *

Asuna hummed as she moved around the kitchen area, happy to have access to a fully equipped one. The inns on the current floors had no kitchen after all, and she couldn't work on her growing «Cooking Skill». To her silent pride, it was already at a level 51, not that she would ever tell her guild members.

Everyone had been very supportive of her when she announced that she wanted to cook for them. After the first meal she had prepared, she had been officially promoted to head cook, much to her embarrassment. It wasn't like she minded though, since she enjoyed cooking for the others, especially enjoying the look of elation often on Kirito's face when he ate her cooking.

Speaking of Kirito... Asuna put on an angry expression as she turned around to face him. "Stop staring at the food!"

Kirito who had been sitting on the counter, silently drooling at the piece of meat being prepared snapped out of his trance. "Wuh?"

Turning his entranced stare onto Asuna, who was equipped with a rather frilly pink apron, he blinked.

"I said... d-don't stare at me like that!" Asuna blushed as Kirito seemed to be drooling at her, absently covering her figure with her hands. "G-go outside until the foods done!"

Kirito hastily obeyed, knowing how scary an upset Asuna was, especially equipped with a soup ladle. Silently pouting as he moved away from the food, he deeply hoped the food was ready soon. Ever since he had tasted Asuna's cooking, he had been hooked, and had looked forward to every meal ever since. Did he dare tell Asuna that her cooking was better than his mother and Sugu's combined?

Shaking his head from such ominous thoughts, he opened the back door and stepped outside to the back porch. Having rented the same house they had stayed the first time, he was familiar with the layout. Seeing that Lisbeth and Silica was sitting and talking amiably on the swinging loveseat, he joined Argo at the wooden table. The mousy girl was responding to a multitude of PMs as usual, and he stared in wonder at the speed in which her hands moved on the virtual keyboard.

"Hey Ki-bou~" She greeted the moment he had sat down beside her, getting a tired reply from him.

Resting his head on the wooden table, he sighed in contentment, the peaceful atmosphere along with the beautiful sight of the calm snowfall was doing wonders in bringing him to sleep. If he wasn't looking forward so much to lunch, he would have preferred to take a nap. Something he had taken to doing much to the girls' irritation.

Staring at the girl out of the corner of his eye, he glared suspiciously as Argo giggled in her reply. He had long suspected that she was responsible for a good amount of the rumours about him, since he knew she received a lot of requests for information about him. Since she never asked him for information, he suspected that she probably said whatever she wanted about him. If only Kirito knew how many of the requests were from interested girls.

"Kirito-kun!"

Before he could ask Argo what she was up to, Lisbeth and Silica joined them at the table, startling his train of thought.

"Hey girls." He greeted, receiving smiles in return.

"So so, did you find those 'easter eggs' you were talking about?"

"Actually yes." He answered. He had actually gotten three of the rabbits from his time hunting from the morning till now. It was a surprising amount considering that there were probably only a couple left on this floor. "I found some things you girls might like."

His teasing tone made the three girls curious. "What is it?"

"It's a secret." Smiling at the girls' pouts, he was suddenly reminded of something. "Oh yea, that reminds me, I found something this morning for you Silica."

"F-for me?" The smaller girl asked in happiness.

Manipulating his inventory, he opened up a trade with the younger girl, and traded the rare drop he had gotten this morning.

"'Santa Hat'?" Silica murmured in wonder, wondering why Kirito seemed to be beaming in happiness.

"Equip it." He told her, trying not to sound too eager.

"Okay..."

The moment she equipped the item however, everyone around her froze. Silica looked around nervously. "W-what's wrong?"

Twin cries of elation was her reply, as she was promptly glomped by Argo and Lisbeth.

"SHES SO CUTE!"

Indeed, with the santa-styled cap on her head, she looked adorable with her matching red armour and small figure. Kirito resisted the urge to hug the girl, seeing that she was already blushing enough from the attention of the other girls. Pretending to not see SIlica's pleading look, Kirito wished he had some sort of recording device as the scene was simply too cute.

"Food is ready~"

Everyone froze as Asuna made her entry. They looked on as she blinked once, taking in the odd scene. As her eyes fell onto Silica, her eyes widened in surprise.

"Silica-chan!"

Kirito hastily dived, hands reaching to save the large plate of food that Asuna had dropped in her lunge.

"Eep!"

Silica promptly suffered as the pile of girls fell on her.

* * *

It was a while later that the group had finally settled down, and had gathered around the wooden table for brunch. The group happily enjoyed the meal, praising Asuna for once again making such delicious food.

"This is so good Asuna!" Lisbeth exclaimed in happiness, happily biting into a sandwich. "I didn't even know the game had mayo."

"Well...it doesn't." Seeing the questioning glances, she elaborated. "They have very generic flavours you can choose from, but you can make your own by matching several other ingredients. This sauce is one that I made recently from sampling a bunch of other flavours, It doesn't taste exactly like mayonnaise, but I'm working on improving it."

She felt nervous as the group shared a look with one another.

"Asuna is ours right?" Lisbeth asked Argo beside her.

"Mmm, of course. Lets keep this to ourselves.." Even for an information broker, she knew a secret like this was worth more than any amount of col.

Asuna giggled as the group all shared serious nods, inwardly glad that they appreciated her cooking so much.

"By the way Kirito-kun, did you find the special monsters you were talking about?" She and the girls were initially very skeptical when he had told them where he was going, especially since the information came from an NPC. One of the NPC hunters in the city often spoke to the players about how the rarest rabbits would come out of hiding nearing the end of december, a rumour that had remained unproven until today.

"I actually found two of them this morning." He said happily. "One of them even dropped the hat that Silica is wearing."

The group stared longingly once more at the now sulking Silica who had been forced to keep the hat on despite her protests.

"Both of them dropped something I think you girls will like." Seeing their curiosity overwhelming them, especially in the case of Lisbeth, he decided to appease them. Manipulating his game inventory, he quickly materialized the chocolate he had gotten from this morning.

"I-is that..." The voice came from Asuna, but she was not alone as the rest of the girls gasped in awe. Chocolate was not something that could be found in Aincrad, not from the NPCs nor from Cooking, although there were rumours that you could unlock the method once your «Cooking Skill» was high enough. Even then, the mere idea of chocolate was just rumours and speculation as many people thought the ability to eat the treat without impacting your real body was just too good to be true.

"Yep, likely the only piece of chocolate in Aincrad, the rabbits usually drop tw-"

He was interrupted as Asuna swiftly swept the chocolate bar out of his hands, unwrapping it with haste. Taking a slight nibble, Asuna moaned in contentment as the taste of high quality chocolate hit her tongue. "This is amazing."

Seeing the other girls stare in jealousy, Kirito laughed. "Relax, I have enough for all of you."

Having distributed the rest of the chocolate bars to the excited girls, he smiled at their ecstatic expressions once they had a taste. He never had a thing for sweets but he knew girls, especially Sugu, loved them. His money had often been spent on an exorbitantly large amount of chocolate especially during the holidays or special dates.

"So... what are you girls going to do today?" Asking them once they had their fill of chocolate, Kirito hoped that they would be busy.

"I'm going to be at the market district on the fourth floor, we still need to sell a lot of our drops, and I still need to meet up with a few... informants hehe~" Argo beamed at him, and he couldn't help but feel slightly suspicious.

"I'm going with her, I need to level up my «Blacksmithing», and I thought I should try and help the rest of the players a bit." Lisbeth had been only making their weapons for most of the time, all of them having put their free time to training.

Nodding at the two girls, he turned to the other two.

"Um... I'm going to visit the Church, I haven't seen them in a while." Silica smiled as she thought of all of her friends back at the church. Although they had been extremely surprised when they found out that she was now a front-liner, they had all been very supportive of her, even Sasha who still worried after her even now.

"That's great, I'll drop by sometime too." Kirito said thoughtfully. He also hadn't been there in awhile, although he still kept up with Sasha through PMs, and thought it would be nice to visit them while they had all this time.

Turning to Asuna who was still contently nibbling on the chocolate bar, Krito hoped that she would also confirm that she was busy. "And Asuna?"

"Huh? Oh." Blushing as she was snapped out of her chocolate-induced state, she put a finger to her chin in a thinking pose. "I don't know... I was planning on working on a few new recipes."

Seeing the unusually eager look on Kirito's face, she narrowed her eyes. "Why do you look so happy Kirito-kun."

"W-what?" The girls all turned to look at him suspiciously. "I just... you know, thought that I could sleep in today, given that you are all busy."

The girls all shared an annoyed look with each other. Kirito had been napping almost every time they had free time lately, and they had to deal with his unresponsive body even though his sleeping face was often too cute. They knew he liked to sleep, but napping shouldn't be treated as a hobby.

"And you girls won't let me train alone so..." It wasn't as if he resented them for it, but the girls acted like he would suddenly fall over if he was left alone. He liked to think he was somewhat strong despite his delicate appearance.

Asuna sighed as she regarded the boy in front of her. He just couldn't understand that they worried about him just as much as he worried about them. Kirito would never let any of the girls train alone, but couldn't understand why they thought the same way. He was too protective sometimes... in a good way.

"No means no Kirito-kun, especially on the fifth floor."

Ever since they had arrived on the fourth floor, many players had been overwhelmed by the introduction of a new type of monsters. The humanoid types, the ones that imitated human movement and were stronger than most creature-based ones. Many players were not used to the human-like movements of the mobs, and was slowly adjusting to it. It was a bit daunting to be faced with a savagely smirking human npc that was equipped with a sword and could use the same sword skills as you.

It was a wonder how they had defeated the fourth floor boss, who was a rather large stone guardian that had very human-like movements. It could be largely attributed to the fact that Kirito was unfazed to the new mob type. Even the fact that he had encountered them in the beta did not excuse the fact that Kirito seemed to be more at ease facing them than the other type of mobs.

He could take on a variety of the humanoid monsters without taking a single hit because he could read their movements like a book. He had told them that it was something you learned in Kendo; to learn to anticipate all of your opponents moves. They had been very skeptical however, as the way he deflected and dodged the attacks was simply too fluid. It was like a dance, the way he moved between opponents, leaving crippling damage in his wake. Asuna herself had wondered how strong Kirito would be in a duel, to which Argo merely smirked widely.

"If you have nothing to do then... lets go hunting!"

"Ehh?" Kirito exclaimed in surprise, along with the other girls.

"S-since you are obviously growing too lazy." Asuna blushed lightly at the focused attention from the others. "And I want more of the chocolate."

It was an acceptable excuse after all, hunting for the rare seasonal chocolate that likely wouldn't show up for another year. The girls all accepted the decision, overwhelming any protest that Kirito would have had. He accepted it with a minor protest, since he had wanted to continue hunting anyways.

"So just Asuna and Ki-bou huh? Don't do anything I wouldn't do kids~"

Twin blushes met her teasing and Argo laughed on the way out, dragging a suddenly reluctant Lisbeth and Silica along.

* * *

"Are you sure you want to do this?"

The voice of her long-time friend startled her from her deep thoughts.

"I... of course Keita... I want to do this."

He frowned as he regarded the frail looking girl besides him. They had been together long enough that he could easily tell when she was lying. Judging by the way she clenched her spear nervously, he could tell she didn't want to do this.

"You don't have to Sachi-chan... really. We wouldn't mind at all, and I'm sure some of us might even feel better if you were safe."

Although he tried to sound comforting, his words sank deeply into her person. The thought of being safe in the starting city, all alone was something that scared her. She didn't want to be left alone... alone to her thoughts. Ever since the group had started leveling a week ago, she had tried her best to wait patiently in the city. Yet every moment she spent in the city was spent in fear, fear for her friends, and fear for her future. She couldn't take any more days in silence, waiting desperately for her friends to come back.

"I'm fine Keita. I really want to help." She murmured.

Even though he didn't look convinced, he nodded his assent, going back to the front of the group where his rowdy party was playfully bantering. He hoped Sachi would be okay eventually, he knew she was a girl that often pretended to be strong.

The group had decided a week ago to do something other than sitting around the inn, trying to will the time away. Ever since they had learned of the clearing of the first boss, many of them had been inspired. Visiting the unlocked cities, and seeing the high level clearers had made them aware of the gap between players like them. Besides the gap in levels and equipment, they had seen something in the clearers that they had lacked; a sense of determination. After a long discussion, the group had decided that they also wanted to help, to one day be on the front lines, clearing the game for the sake of everyone else.

Keita smiled as he led the way to one of the leveling areas, he was confident in this rag-tag group of friends he had known since elementary school. The computer club was just something he had decided to start as a way for his friends to hang out after school, but along the way they had picked up new members like Sachi and Ducker who had become like family to them. SAO was supposed to be an awesome new game where they could meet each more often.

It was his suggestion, and he felt the weight of his decision everyday, and even though none of his party members blamed him, he often wondered what would be the result if he had just decided to forgo playing SAO on the launch day.

Ducker who had been conversing rather loudly with his friends suddenly stopped, noticing the trailing Sachi. Slowing down his walk so he could fall into place besides the solemn looking girl, he frowned as he noted her state.

"What's wrong Sachi?"

The girl looked up at the blonde haired boy in surprise. "N-nothing."

"Come on now, you can tell me anything Sachi." He smiled widely at her.

"I'm just... worried I guess." She mumbled, looking away.

"You have nothing to worry about! We are all here aren't we? Were not going to let anything happen to you." He stated firmly, before calling the other guys. "Right guys?"

Sachi smiled slightly as the group shouted a loud affirmation. She felt slightly better as the group consoled her, but still couldn't shake the nervous feeling in her stomach. Didn't the group know that this was now a death game? Going out like this, facing monsters... it wasn't a game anymore.

"Thanks." She murmured to Ducker, receiving a big smile in return.

Silently steeling her resolve, she decided to put her trust in the group, they had always been there for her after all. In a group of computer club students, she was definitely the odd one out, being the only girl. Her friends however, always treated her like she was one of them, being patient with her shy nature. She could confidently say that the group was like family to her.

There was a sudden commotion with the group and Sachi caught up to them curiously.

"What's going on?"

Her question was answered when the group pointed towards a particularly odd scene. There were two players, a sight which was rare in itself as most of the groups that ventured out tended to be full parties. What was even more surprising was that they seemed to be arguing in the midst of a large concentration of mobs. She vaguely recalled that they were only level 3 wolf mobs that the group had talked about taking down yesterday.

Their arguing had created a large amount of noise, angering the wolf mobs around them. Sachi sucked in a breath as she watched a handful of the wolves leap up at the players. Before any of the group could even shout out a warning, the wolves exploded into polygons. Most of them were dispersed by the rapier user, and the rest was dispersed swiftly by throwing weapons from the other player.

"Come on."

She was startled when she heard Keita urge them towards the two other players. Suddenly nervous as they approached them, especially as she took in their appearances. One of them, the rapier user, was revealed to be a very pretty female player with flowing chestnut-brown hair. She seemed to hold an aura of confidence that Sachi couldn't help but envy, wielding the weapon at her side with familiarity. The other player... Sachi felt her eyes widen as she took in his appearance. Messy black hair framed his face, and with piercingly deep eyes, he held himself with an aura that she couldn't identify. All she knew was that the boy was someone that held absolutely no fear... someone completely opposite of her.

The group stopped a few feet from the arguing players, waiting until they were noticed. Most of the boys were gazing in awe at Asuna, understandable as she definitely stood out in terms of looks. The male player wasn't immediately noticeable to them, but Keita seemed to narrow his eyes in thought, trying to think where he had seen him before.

"-nd I say it was your fault!" The girl huffed, crossing her arms.

"I told you I had it, attacking from ranged was the best bet!"

"Oh? Are you saying you didn't believe in my rapier skills?"

"W-wah I didn't mean it like that, just saying that it would have been easier for me." The male immediately regretted his words, as the girl opposite of him narrowed her eyes.

"What are you trying to say?" She bit out. Inwardly smirking as Kirito sweated in front of her. She knew that he was much more skilled than her, but the way he had said it had irritated her.

Kirito sighed and was about to open his mouth to apologize when he suddenly blinked, noticing the presence of multiple players behind Asuna.

"Erm..."

Seeing Kirito's confused expression, Asuna looked over her shoulders only to let out a squeak of surprise as she faced five curious faces. She immediately made her way over to Kirito's side, seemingly hiding behind his shoulders.

"Hello!" Keita greeted cheerfully, the group stared at him oddly.

"Ah, hello?" Kirito hesitantly replied, he had never expected to meet any other players on the first floor and felt awkward as he took in their appearances. They looked like new players, judging by their equipment, and he suddenly felt slightly guilty. "Are we by any chance taking your training area?"

Asuna behind him suddenly looked guilty as she glanced around at the cleared wolf mobs.

"We were chasing a mob and it led us out of the forest so..." Kirito explained, gesturing to the forest behind him. The rabbit had sprinted with such speed that it was nearly impossible to keep up with, yet he and Asuna tried their best considering that it would likely disappear afterwards.

"Ah, no no! We just saw you guys arguing and it caught our attention." He said, causing Asuna and Kirito to blush slightly in embarrassment.

"Ahaha... sorry about that." Kirito murmured, rubbing the back of his neck.

"But, I'm curious, what are such high level players like yourselves doing here?" Keita's group suddenly blinked as they re-examined the two in front of them. Indeed, you could immediately tell the difference between their equipments, Kirito's black coat a definite indicator. Asuna likewise had a set of red cloth armour, and a comfortable looking white woolen cape around her. What was even more indicative was the guild icon besides their names when you examined them. Only the highest leveled players were in guilds at the moment, since you needed a good amount of col just to create one.

Kirito blinked before answering. "Well, the front lines right now are on a break due to the holidays... and we thought we would spend some time hunting «Holiday Rabbits»."

Seeing their confused looks, he told them about the special holiday mob, and how it dropped special items. The group looked awed, as they had never expected something like this for a holiday event. Most of them were even more awed by the fact that the two of them were obviously the rumoured 'clearers' that everyone was talking about. The very select few that risked their lives on the front lines and on bosses.

As Kirito finished his explanation, Keita felt that this was a perfect opportunity that was not to be wasted. "I have to ask then, are you two busy?"

Kirito shared a look with Asuna before replying. "I don't think so, that rabbit was probably going to be the last one for this floor..." He had been deeply disappointed as they had only hunted down one additional rabbit.

"Could you... I mean, would you guys help us out?" Seeing that he had their attention, Keita elaborated. "We're a new group you see, and we want to train enough so that we can eventually be on the front lines like you guys... but we are kind of nervous, and I think it would help alot if we had players like you giving us some tips."

Kirito smiled along with Asuna, his goal was a very admirable one. "Of course, we don't mind."

"Sure!" Asuna herself could see where these guys were coming from, if she didn't have someone like Kirito with her, she would surely be similar to them.

"That's great!" Keita gave off a wide smile, before gesturing to himself. "My name is Keita."

Seeing him gesture to them, the rest of the group began their own introductions.

"And my name is Tetsuo."

"Sasamaru."

"Ducker!"

Seeing that Sachi was hiding herself slightly behind them, the three of them grinned before pushing her infront of them. "Ah! Uhm... I'm Sachi."

Smiling at the girl's shyness, Asuna stepped up to grasp the other girl's hands in greeting. "Hello! I'm Asuna."

"H-hello." Sachi greeted shyly.

"And I'm Kirito, nice to meet you all." Kirito finished.

With the greetings finished, Keita grinned before clapping his hands in excitement. "Great! Lets go get some training!"

* * *

Sachi watched on as her group cleared the pack of boars under the supervision of Kirito and Asuna. They had been doing so for about an hour now, and they looked as enthusiastic as ever, talking amiably with the two. Kirito had already pointed out several flaws in their teamwork, and the group had set out to correct them. With the presence of the two clearers, the group seemed to be unnaturally motivated, seemingly trying to prove something.

She felt unnaturally out of place. Sitting here under the tree, watching her club members fight for their lives on a snow covered field. She had been reluctant to join in, and they told her it was fine, and to sit out for awhile until the area was more cleared. Yet, the more she watched on, the more she dreaded the thought of facing the monsters.

"Sachi-san." The voice of Asuna caught her attention, the lithe rapier user walking up to her.

"Ah, Asuna-san..." She wondered what the girl was doing here.

"Kirito-kun's handling things fine, so I thought I would check up on you." Asuna gave her a worried look, and Sachi brought her knees up to her chest closer.

"I'm fine Asuna-san, no need to worry."

The two of them were silent for awhile before Asuna decided to sit down next to her by the tree. She sighed, watching with a slight smile as Kirito berated the group for targeting more boars than they could handle. It felt nostalgic even though it had only been about a month, but the difference between the Asuna from a month ago and the Asuna now was such that they could have been two separate people.

"It's okay you know..." Asuna began, causing Sachi to look at her in surprise. "To be scared. I know that feeling well." Her fear had become so great at one point that she had effectively become detached from reality in order to deal with it. Fighting monsters without a care for her hp, not stopping to rest, only caring to forget herself.

"But... how? You are so strong Asuna-san... compared to someone like me."

"That's not true at all." Asuna interjected firmly. "I'm not strong at all... in fact you could say I'm incredibly weak."

Sachi chose not to respond, but did not believe her. How could someone with the courage to step out on the front lines, risking their lives for the sake of others be weak?

"In the beginning... I was like everyone else, scared and helpless. After the first few weeks, I had pretty much given up." Sachi shot her a confused look, and Asuna smiled wryly. "It was over, I had decided. Why bother delaying the inevitable? That was my train of thought, and so I threw myself out onto the field, and without a care for anything else, I started to slay monsters."

"B-but, that's good isn't it? You had the courage to go out there."

"It wasn't courage Sachi-san..." Asuna murmured sullenly. "I had effectively given up, but couldn't end it by choosing to jump off the world, instead I wanted to fight until I couldn't anymore, to effectively let the world end me." She wanted to die fighting in a vain attempt to justify suicide. "I would have died continuing like I had... no sleep, no rest, no care for myself."

"What happened?" Sachi was captivated by the story, wondering how such a strong character like Asuna could have been in such a state.

"Kirito-kun happened." Asuna smiled in remembrance. The odd encounter that had such a profound effect on her that she had promptly snapped out of her trance. "He gave me hope in such a bleak world."

They both looked onto the field at the subject of their discussion, the black haired boy seemed to be showing several of them how to properly position themselves.

"That boy... there's something about him that makes you want to believe." Besides his commanding aura, he also had a gentleness to him that made you _want_ to be at his side... or maybe that was her slight affection for him talking. "Because of him, I've met my closest friends in this game, and ever since then we've all been together. Together... I think, no we _will _beat this game."

Asuna suddenly clapped her hands and stood up, dusting off the small bit of accumulated snow off of her. "Alright, lets go kill some boars Sachi-san."

"But I-" Sachi looked up, meeting Asuna's smiling face, and seeing eyes that didn't judge her, but merely supportive of her. "Okay..."

The group had gathered around her, shouting words of encouragement as she faced down her firs enemy. She didn't feel so nervous anymore, instead she felt an oddly warm sensation spread through her as she felt the encouragement of her friends wash over her. Gripping the sword firmly in one hand, she replayed the instructions she had gotten from Asuna. Glaring down at the boar, she charged.

"_Believe in yourself Sachi, you're stronger than you think!" _

She met the boar in a frenzied daze, and in a short moment later felt the odd surge of victory as it exploded into polygons. As her friends rushed up to her in happiness, she felt a smile break out of her face. Asuna and Kirito watched on from the side, smiling at the warm scene.

She had found her resolve.

* * *

"This is it, welcome guys."

The group stopped in front of the western styled cottage in wonder, silently asking how he had a residence as grand as this in the first floor. After the training session, Asuna had invited them all over for dinner, seeing the need to celebrate. They had accepted readily of course, having heard of her wonderful food from an appreciative Kirito.

Opening the door, Kirito was immediately met with several loud exclamations.

"Kirito-niichan!"

"Oof!"

Several small bodies collided with his, and he had to readjust his balance several times as he was overwhelmed. Calming down rapidly after seeing who it was, Kirito merely laughed as he tried to appease the excitable faces of the children. It seemed that Silica had also invited everyone from the Church over as well.

"Oops..." Silica murmured as she saw the large group of people behind Asuna. It seemed like the cottage would be overcrowded soon. The girl sheepishly grinned as Asuna gave her an exasperated look, wondering if she expected her to cook for all these people.

This wasn't the time to argue however, as Asuna beckoned the group inside, to which they followed slowly. Their eyes widened however, when they saw all the people inside. It seemed there was a huge gathering of players, but what was unusual was that most of them had no equipment on except standard clothing, and most of them were extremely young, ranging from 10 to 12 years old.

Kirito was soon swarmed by additional children as he struggled with the ones currently riding on his body, he was soon overtaken as he collapsed under the weight of all the smaller players. Everyone laughed as Kirito suffered under a dog pile and despite his pleas, had a smile on his face as he pretended to fend off the children.

"Are these... all children?" Keita murmured in wonder.

"Yes." A voice from besides them surprised the group. The speaker was revealed to be a young woman in her early 20s with short brown hair and sharp green eyes, she was currently wearing a nuns uniform to the players' confusion. "Most of them were alone after the game started, so I try to take care of them by myself..."

"That's very honourable of you Miss..." Keita recovered quickly, admiring the aura the lady seemed to hold, something that reminded him of his homeroom teacher; a particularly vicious woman.

"You may call me Sasha." She said curtly, choosing to stare on as Kirito played with the children, a small smile on her face. Ever since the start of the game, Sasha had held resentment for many of the players, seeing that they ignored the helpless children who would have remained alone if not for her. Meeting Kirito however, served to remind her that not all players were the same, as he was someone that had helped her greatly. Seeing him and his companions had given her and the children hope.

She still checked in from time to time, more so in the beginning since she felt that Kirito rarely cared for himself. She was also glad that his companions seemed to care very deeply for his well-being. Silica was also a concern that had been frequently on her mind, but it was proven to be unfounded as Silica seemed to have blossomed alongside Kirito. She was no longer a lonely little girl who sat by herself, but an inspiration for the other children - someone that would carry their hope for them.

"Around 30 people..." Asuna mumbled, silently calculating the amount of food that would be required.

"Oho?"

Everyone looked once again at the doorway where a surprised Lisbeth and Argo stood. Keita's party looked shocked as their minds connected the dots. Kirito's party members that he had spoken fondly of were all girls. Kirito felt a sudden chill run down his spine, probably due to the numerous glares.

"It seems we have a party here, why wasn't I notified Ki-bou?" Argo pouted, crossing her arms.

"Hey Sasha-san." Lisbeth greeted, getting a nod in return. "Um... hello?"

Keita's group seemed to rearrange themselves as they all sought to greet her in a hurry. Lisbeth was surprisingly popular, as well as Argo. It was to be expected since Asuna was way harder to approach than the two girls in front of them.

"Hello! My name is Ducker, 14 years old, single." The beanie-clad blond smiled radiantly at Lisbeth who blinked in surprise.

"...Okay?"

Argo on the other hand merely giggled as the other two boys made a fool of themselves trying to introduce themselves. "Well, isn't this nice?"

Kirito coughed suddenly. "I guess introductions are in order. Everyone, these guys are a new party that we met today."

He gestured to the nervous looking group, introducing each of them. Argo and Lisbeth immediately latched onto the nervous looking Sachi, silently appraising her. "Mmm..."

The girls shared a look before nodding, saying their introductions quickly, they grabbed Asuna and Sachi and headed for the kitchen, Silica on their heels.

"Wah~" Sachi let out a noise of protest as she was dragged along.

"Dinner in about half an hour, set up the tables Kirito!"

Kirito sighed as he looked around the cramped cottage, despite its luxurious interior, it was not meant to be housing this many people. He would have to start rearranging much of the furniture. Before he could start however he was interrupted by a stern cough.

"By the way Kirito-san, I would like to have a word with you about your... sleeping arrangements."

Silently cursing, Kirito reluctantly followed the older woman into another room, probably for a motherly scolding.

The rest of the group shared a confused look as they were left with a room full of younger children.

"Now what?"

* * *

"Really!?"

"Oh my..."

"That's so cruel Sachi-san..."

"Yea, I don't think I could've done that."

Sachi blushed as she was subjected to the scrutiny of the other girls. It would be the first time in... ever, that she was surrounded in a group of girls that was interested in what she had to say.

"W-well, it's not that bad! I mean, I do get a room by myself, and they share the rest..." She was referring to her housing situation, having been in inns for the past two months.

"Still though... to be living with four guys like that, you poor thing." Lisbeth patted her shoulders in sadness.

"Um..."

"Right, we need to help Sachi out immediately, lets get her some proper clothing first of all."

"W-wait." Before she could protest a trade menu had already popped up and Argo immediately placed a variety of clothing onto it. "I can't possibly accept all this!"

"Don't worry Sachi-chan, this is very important, I won't take no for an answer." Argo firmly stated.

"Alright..." Silently pressing the confirmation button, her inventory immediately filled up.

"Now put on the blue dress!"

The girls all watched as she manipulated her inventory, finding the aforementioned item. "This one?"

As she equipped it, she immediately felt the change and was silently awed as she felt the difference in quality. It felt much more comfortable than her beginners starter armour.

"Very pretty!" The girls all agreed, causing Sachi to blush shyly.

"Good, now we only have to get you some sexy lingerie." Argo hummed thoughtfully.

"Ah! N-no thank you!" She squeaked.

The rest of the girls all sighed in exasperation. "Don't worry, Argo is just teasing." Silica said from the side.

"Anyway, back to our interrogation. You were saying something about your own room?" Lisbeth inquired, eyes gleaming.

Sachi gulped.

* * *

"You think they are talking about us?" Ducker whispered to his friends. They had been seated around a glass table while the children had several wooden tables to themselves. They seemed to be behaving rather nicely under the stern watch of Sasha, although several of them were still running around the room recklessly.

"No way..." Murmured Tetsuo. "Why would they talk about us, we just met them."

"I think I made a pretty good impression though." Ducker grinned. "I think the pink-haired one likes me."

"Pfft not a chance Ducker." Sasamaru scoffed, smirking when Ducker glared at him.

"What do you think Keita?"

The guys all turned to stare at their contemplative leader who had been thinking deeply the whole time. "What are you thinking about anyway?"

"Mmm..." Keita hummed thoughtfully. "I think I know who Kirito is."

They all shared a look of surprise before looking back at Keita. "Who?"

"His high level, black clothing, and that oddly commanding aura, theres no doubt in my mind that he is the rumoured «Prince»."

"Prince?!" Ducker exclaimed, gathering the attention of many in the room, including Kirito who tilted his head to the side in question. Smiling awkwardly, Ducker tried to avoid their curious stares.

"You mean the one that's the leader of the «Royal Swords»? That would mean..."

They all shared a look of surprise as their minds connected the dots.

"Damnit! That means all those girls... they are in his party." The group had heard all about the infamous guild, it was the most popular and circulated rumors after all.

The «Royal Swords», consisting of the infamous «Prince» and four other female players. There were many rumours surrounding the other girls, none of them being confirmed. But the one rumour that everyone knew to be the truth was that the «Prince» was the leader of the guild and was a male player who lead the boss raids. His physical appearance was also obscured by several dozen rumours as well as his in-game name, only the colour black was repeated in those rumours.

To the regular players who heard his title, they wondered how he had gotten such a moniker, but when you asked any of the clearers, they would reply that it suited him perfectly. One of the more popular interpretations however was that he was acting like royalty, surrounding himself with a collection of cute girls.

Kirito suddenly felt three separate glares fall on his back, and he wondered why he felt suddenly chilly in the warm cottage.

Keita however had been observing the player the whole day, trying to figure out the exact difference between a high level player and himself. He had been saddened at first to see just how far the gap had run, seeing the immense strength Kirito showed from the very brief moments when he showed them how to kill something. It was more than the level difference with Kirito, for the player seemed to radiate an aura of strength, showing a grace that he knew could not be replicated.

But now he understood, and felt slightly better knowing that he was trying to compare himself with what seemed to be the strongest player in the game. Nonetheless, he was grateful towards the player who had helped them improve tremendously in such a short amount of time. Sachi most of all, as she seemed like a new person after spending the afternoon with Asuna.

"Dinner is ready!" The cheerful voice of Asuna caught everyones attention, causing many to shout in happiness. "Kirito! Help us carry the food out."

It was moments later when the girls and Kirito carried out their food and as they set the large plates down, everyone gasped.

"I-is that... roast boar?" Ducker exclaimed while salivating. His group members were likewise dumbfounded as they saw some gourmet meat land in front of them. This wasn't something you could ever buy, and it smelled and looked absolutely delicious.

Seeing Sachi sit down silently beside him, Keita turned towards her only to blink in surprise. "Sachi?"

The poor girl seemed to be blushing deeply as she sat down with the group. Everyone turned towards her and couldn't help but look appreciatively at her new dress.

"Lookin' good Sachi-chan!" Ducker shouted, only to be met with Sachi burying her face in her hands in embarrassment.

Chuckling at the antics of his group as Ducker immediately set about apologizing, receiving chastising remarks from Tetsuo and Sasamaru. He silently sent a thankful nod towards Kirito, who noticed it and smiled back. He had never seen his group this happy before ever since the start, especially Sachi, who was now smiling at their antics.

"Itadakimasu!"

* * *

It was much later after everyone had their fill and then some, that it was time to leave. The children having started to nod off, having gorged themselves on the luxurious food.

"The food was amazing Asuna-san!" Keita exclaimed in thanks, everyone was now at the door exchanging good-byes, and the general atmosphere was light.

"I-it was nothing Keita-san, please come by again!" She replied happily, she had constantly been pelted with praises the whole night, with one of the children asking if she would become his mother to the laughter of the entire group. Her face was still slightly red from embarrassment.

Off to the side, Sachi was exchanging good-byes with the rest of the girls in Kirito's party.

"Make sure you keep in touch Sachi-chan." Argo began, patting the younger girl on the head. "If the messy boys ever become too much, feel free to join us you know."

"I will Argo-san." Sachi smiled, having taken a liking to the excitable girl, knowing that she genuinely cared.

Exchanging hugs with Lisbeth and Silica who she had also connected with, Sachi felt content for the first time in a long while.

Finally seeing Asuna, she walked up to her and surprised her by grasping her in a tight hug. "Thank you..."

Asuna stiffened as the girl whispered into her ear, but relaxed as she felt the heartfelt thanks. "No problem Sachi-chan... anytime."

Her group members stood to the side watching the scene with wide smiles, they were happy that Sachi had finally broken out of her shell. They wouldn't say it, but they had been worried about her lately, especially because she kept bottling her worries inside.

Seeing that everybody was ready, Kirito stretched before joining up with the large group.

"I'll walk you guys to the starting city." The precaution was unnecessary but he knew it would help assure Sasha who had been staring outside, worried about the dark moonlit night.

Kirito waved lightly at the girls by the door before falling in step with the larger group. The night was very dark, and fortunately for the full moon that gleamed in the night sky, the group could still navigate clearly. With the soft constant snowfall that had been present since this morning still continuing, the night made for a beautiful scene.

He smiled as he watched the children lean onto each other for support, most of them extremely tired. They seemed to have enjoyed visiting him, and that was something that made him happy, knowing that children like them could still have fun in this trapped world. He silently vowed to treat them again as Christmas approached, as he knew the girls wouldn't mind it, and it would be good to surround them with company during the first holiday spent without their family.

Turning his attention to a softly conversing group centered around Keita, he also reminded himself to invite the group. To start out this late in the game must have taken considerable will power, and he applauded their courage. Having worked with them steadily throughout the afternoon, he felt he had an accurate gauge of their potential. If they continued working at this pace, and perfecting their teamwork, he felt that they could easily catch up in no time. They just needed more practice, and he also felt that Keita would be a good leader to them.

Sachi... she was someone that he hadn't worked with much compared to the others, having left her to Asuna. It seemed to work as she no longer looked sullen and seemed to be carrying herself with a renewed sense of confidence. He had seen her in the beginning with eyes filled with hidden fear that he didn't know where to begin with her. Seeing Asuna talk with the girl and subsequently teaching her, he had wondered just how Asuna had done it. The results in the end were unquestionable however, and he felt that Sachi could work well with the group. The only issue would be her final role within the group, seeing as she could fit anywhere at this point.

Seeing the girl turn her head around slightly to peak at him, he smiled in response. He was slightly confused when she hastily turned her head back to the front. Maybe he had done something to her he didn't know about...

The large gates of the starting city loomed up ahead, and Sasha let out a sigh of relief along with most of the children.

"The Church is just over there." She gestured to a building with a large cross situated on the top. Turning towards the others she bid them farewell, waving lightly at Kirito. The children also sleepily said their goodbyes, and Kirito promised to visit them more often, sucumbing to the doe-eyed stare of one of the younger girls.

"Our inn is just a few minutes from here." Keita pointed out. He was surprised when Kirito decided to walk up next to them.

"It's okay, might as well accompany you guys the rest of the way." The group nodded their assent, and proceeded tiredly to their inn.

Approaching the large stone building with a single sign that said «Traveler's Den» the group stopped and exchanged tired goodbyes with Kirito.

"Thank you very much for today Kirito-san." Keita began, shaking his hand firmly. "I don't know how I can repay you."

"Don't worry about it Keita-san, it was my pleasure." Kirito smiled, shaking his hand once more before letting go. Keita clasped his shoulders in thanks before making his way into the inn where a soft bed awaited him. The rest of the guys also turned to thank him, shaking his hand firmly, and Ducker even gave him a short bow.

Soon it was just him and Sachi.

The poor girl looked like she would faint as she looked rather feverish in front of him. Kirito frowned but decided not to comment, he had wanted to place a hand against her forehead to check for a fever but he knew that you couldn't get sick in SAO.

"Kirito-san." She began nervously, and to Kirito's shock she bowed deeply. "Thank you!"

Smiling slightly as he grasped her shoulders and helped her up. "Sachi-san..."

"Y-yes?" She tried to look away from his piercing stare but felt entranced.

"I just want you to know that your friends believe in you, and that together you guys are strong." Kirito's gaze was fierce as it was mesmerizing and Sachi felt herself nodding at his words. "So trust in them okay? And believe in yourself, you are stronger than you think."

She nodded firmly and Kirito let go of her shoulders and offered his hands for her to shake. To his surprise however, she pulled him into a small hug, lasting only a scant moment before she drew back in embarrassment. Her face was bright red as she bid a hasty retreat back inside of the inn.

Kirito smiled as he watched her disappear inside, feeling satisfied at what she had just whispered into his ear.

"_Thank you so much."_

* * *

It seemed to be much later when Kirito finally arrived back at the cottage, utterly exhausted. The day had been rather excitable and he couldn't wait to finally be united with his favourite thing in the world...sleep.

In his sleep-deprived brain however, he followed the steps that he had taken when he had been living alone, taking the stairs up onto the second floor and lazily opening the door to one of the bedrooms. Falling tiredly onto the insanely comfortable bed, he felt something soft surround him in an embrace, and he absently wondered why the bed smelled so sweet...

The next morning was something Kirito would forever mark down in his memory as one of the worst days of his life.

Argo would mark the next morning as one her best.

* * *

**A/N: Phew, another chapter out. This one was mostly an interlude but I think introduced some very popular characters, and shows some character development/interaction.**

**Thanks so much for the reviews last chapter everyone, I actually received 63 reviews for chapter 3, which tells me you guys enjoyed it. I'm glad since that chapter was a killer to write. This one didn't take me that long but I had to decide where I wanted to go immediately after the last chapter and decided upon a transitional chapter. **

**About this chapter, it is mostly showing character interaction and some development, mostly on Asuna and a little on Kirito. Now the introduction of the Black Cats, I know some of you really wanted to know what I was planning to do with Sachi. This interlude chapter pretty much sets the stage for me to pretty much take any direction I want with the guild. I still haven't fully decided, but expect the guild and Sachi to appear later on.**

**Hopefully what I showed here is development of Sachi into something tangible in the future, not just someone Kirito rescues along the way. Also just a side note about the group of levelers in the first scene; they are not the black cats, but an entirely random group (maybe important.)**

**Also I want to address everyone who has said that the story is too 'soft' for SAO at the moment, probably because Diabel didn't die, but since its just the early stages of the story I think its fine. Expect a lot more conflict from the next chapter and onwards, its going to be amazing to see Kirito vs Other Guilds vs Pkers vs Bosses vs Players. Not everyone is going to be happy with his reputation and success of course. **

**Side Note:**** Hey guys, I recently created a forum for SAO on FFnet, its called "SAO Fandom Nexus." and you can find a link on my profile. Basically its a forum for everyone to discuss story ideas/existing stories. I want to encourage everyone to visit the forum because I feel like SAO has so much more potential for many stories, and hopefully we can get some new stories out there. **

**There is also a thread on there that will be about this story, where you can discuss it or give me ideas/suggestions. I actually don't have a lot of things planned out for this story, although I do have many scenes and a general timeline in my head. Most importantly there is a progress meter on that thread, since I know a lot of you are interested in how much I've written ( Llama haha). **

**Thank you for reading.**

**Next Chapter: The Strongest Leader**


	5. Chapter 5 The Strongest Leader

On the 24th floor of Aincrad, amidst the heat of the sun and endless fields of sand, was where the front lines currently made its stand.

A scattering of rocks and sand, mixed with what seemed to be the ruins of an ancient civilization. The floor would have likely been a challenging floor that many of the MMO veterans could have appreciated, if not for the fact that the added difficulty only sought to to hinder the already downtrodden players. There was nothing like an endless desert to encourage the players to clear it.

The floor was also a particularly brutal change of pace for the clearers, as the uneven ground made fighting quite a chore. The heat was a constant annoyance, and the sun sought to blind you at every turn. Nothing could be done to change it however, and the clearers had trudged on, seeking to move one step closer to their goal.

The main city of this floor was the walled royal kingdom of «Pilak», built around a large oasis of water. It was quite obvious why the majority of the players had then set up in the city, as the oasis served to bring much needed humidity to the dry atmosphere and contrary to the harsh conditions outside of the city, «Pilak» had an abundance of wealth. The NPCs of the palace city seemed to be living in happiness, showcasing exotic wares and attracting players with the diversity of their selection. Despite having been only unlocked for less than a week, the city was already crowded with all sorts of players, spanning from low to high levels.

It was a common occurrence for players to congregate in the newly unlocked city in each floor, eager to explore new sights and have an excuse to celebrate. There were also many players that simply wanted to thank the clearers for risking their lives, and it served as a good morale boost for the tired players. As the front lines continued to advance, it was to be expected that there would be casualties along the way, with each one serving as a large blow to the mental strength of the clearers.

After the untimely death of a player on the fifth boss of Aincrad, the clearers had become exceedingly aware of their situation. There was no more cheerful air around the clearers when they met anymore, all of them deciding to put their entire focus on strategizing, trying to avoid thinking about the dangers in what they were doing. Yet as each casualty inevitably stacked up, more and more players had become wary and frightened. Some had even dropped away from the front lines, unable to cope with the stress. It was understandable of course, and no one called them out for being cowards... because at the back of their own minds, they thought the same thing.

Seven months into the death game known as SAO, yet there was no end in sight. Morale was low, and players grew more restless everyday. Some had fallen into the monotony of routine, seeking to establish themselves in this world, hoping to put the dream of the real world to the back of their minds. Forgoing leveling, and the game itself, some had settled themselves to a certain location or community, choosing to try and _live_ inside of the game. For the clearers that remained however, settling down was not an option.

To be a front liner was to put yourself at risk everyday, and for those who had been doing so since the beginning, they had slowly grown into the role. The aspect of death that had lingered near the start of the game was no longer a factor, and fighting the monsters of Aincrad was just another fact of life. They knew that there was no danger from the monsters of SAO if you were careful, and you could not compare the danger of a normal mob to the danger of the «Floor Boss».

To them, the only risks seemed to be when they aimed for the boss clear, and if not for the well-organized strategizing meets prior to each boss, they would have never considered participating. As each floor was slowly cleared, the ranks of the front-liners had grown, and despite the fact that many who had started in the beginning left, there many others that joined to fill their spot. In fact, at this time, there were an overabundance of front-liners, most of which who were up to the task of defeating the boss.

On the steps of the central palace; an elegantly designed stone cathedral, was where the majority of the current clearers anxiously stood. To the many passers-by, many who recognized the group as front liners, they made for a curious sight. The clearers were waiting for the start of the most important meeting on each floor.

The boss strategization meeting; an event called before each fight and was not to be taken lightly. Every clearer, even those not participating would be invited in order for every opinion to be heard. There was no room for error when your lives were on the line after all.

Each of the players knew one another, having been with each other for multiple floors now. Many shared acknowledging looks, and some conversed in low tones. The atmosphere was heavy as many were restless. It was due to the fact that the meeting was called much earlier than many had expected. The usual time it took for a full clear of each floor ranged from a week to two, usually only taking one week for bosses that seemed easy. The scouts played a vital role in that regard, some even testing the limits of the boss before escaping death with teleport crystals. Information for the inevitable boss fight was incredibly important as it served to lessen the chance of a fatality, and to bring much needed confidence to the group.

Having a boss meeting this early in the week meant that there was a complication, either the scout had discovered something noteworthy and they wanted more time to prepare, or something had gone wrong. Every player hoped it was the former.

Although the group of clearers seemed to be an unified front, it was obvious once you looked closer that the group was split into certain sections. It was understandable if you knew the dynamics of how the group worked. A raid group was only as strong as its leader, and if this was a normal MMO then there would usually be no inner conflict about who was in charge. Being trapped in a game of life and death however, tended to create rifts among players, often highlighting the differences in personality rather noticeably.

The leader of the clearers... a much speculated person since there really was no clear answer. If you had asked the general population who they thought leaded the front lines, they would inevitably say «The Prince». Most wouldn't blame them as that particular player held an incredible amount of attention, with his achievements being brought to light often. An overwhelmingly strong person, and many of the clearers would follow his lead at a moments notice - he was someone who had proved himself time and time again.

To the group of clearers themselves however, there really wasn't a single leader they could point to. This was due to the fact that the group of high leveled players had naturally gravitated to like-minded individuals, inevitably joining the guilds that they thought was the best. Now mostly separated by the difference in guilds, it was natural that they would look toward their guild leaders for instructions. It was something understandable since the high leveled guilds fronted much of their players to the goal of clearing the front lines, and the very top guilds in turn made up the majority of the players in the boss raid.

In Aincrad, the top three guilds were set in stone.

The guild that ranked third was the «Divine Dragon Alliance», an enormous guild that had the highest concentration of high leveled players. They were often seen clearing the dungeons near the front lines, and were generally known to be rude to those outside of their guild. A tightly knit guild that was created from the union of three separate guilds - likely resulting in their choice of name. Led by a trinity of strong players that was well-known in the MMO world, the three of them commanded a respectable amount of attention.

The guild coming in second would undoubtedly be the «Knights of the Blood», a rather renowned guild that had come into notice due to their leader. Heathcliff «The Unbreakable» was a formidable player known as the strongest shield user in the game. He had seemingly come into fame out of nowhere as he only joined sometime during the 10th floor, but had immediately proven himself by single handedly blocking several special abilities from the boss in quick succession - an action that had likely saved several players. Showing strong charisma and leadership skills, he quickly attracted several strong players to his side and soon created the «Knights of the Blood». With a very noticeable uniform and high standard of behaviour, their presence was clearly felt amongst the higher levels.

The title of the strongest and subsequently the most renowned guild belonged to the «Royal Swords». An extremely popular subject within SAO, they were known as having the strongest, most noticeable players in the game. Led by the much talked about «The Prince», Kirito, known for his overwhelming fighting style and commanding aura. The guild already had the benefit of having the most well-known clearer; someone who had been on the front lines since level 1, and someone who had led the way for boss fights ever since. But the particulars of the guild did not end with Kirito, even with his fame, there were the others in his guild that also made up part of their reputation.

When a guild had some of the cutest girls in Aincrad, and when those girls all had enough skill to be fighting on the front lines... you tended to garner a lot of attention. The girls themselves were so well known in fact, that there were already several fan clubs dedicated to them. Kirito himself had a fanclub, although the numbers were unknown, their presence was felt often when he found himself venturing out - he never knew what being stared at like a piece of meat was until SAO.

Ever since the discovery of the recording crystal on the fifth floor - a very expensive luxury object that could record pictures and audio, there was a sudden influx of crystals that contained members of «Royal Swords» in various situations. Many wondered where the source of the pictures came from since the various people in them seemed to be in a very relaxed state. That did not stop everyone from purchasing the crystals in bulk, leaving the mysterious suppliers very rich with col. The fan club members would take what they could get, since the guild was very close-knit, often seen together and hard to approach. There were rumours that a particularly revealing photo of the guild leader was in circulation... although it's never been confirmed.

The two more well-known girls of the guild were Asuna «The Flash», and Argo «The Thief ». The reason for their popularity can be largely attributed to how well they stood out, with Asuna being known for being an incredible beauty along with an unmatched attack speed, and Argo was known for being an infamous information dealer as well as using the uncommon claw-type weapons - her moniker was likely a reference to her chosen profession and personality.

The lesser known girls were Silica and Lisbeth, and although they did not receive the same amount of attention as the other two girls, they were still rather noteworthy players themselves. The cute, twin-tailed Silica was the youngest clearer in the game which would have already made her stand out, but the one thing that Silica was also known for was her pet. Having tamed the incredibly rare «Feathery Dragon»; a mob that was thought to be impossible to tame, she was now known as the «Beast Tamer». Lisbeth on the other hand, was known for being the highest ranked blacksmith currently in SAO, and as such, she was more well-known amongst the high leveled players than the general population. Despite being rather friendly and cheerful when off the battlefield, she was also known to be quite intimidating when in a fight and had ended up with the title of «Unyielding» as a result, much to her extreme embarrassment.

Although each of the known members of «Royal Swords» were unique by themselves, what made the guild truly stand out was when they were seen working together. With synergy that no one else could claim to have, the group of 5 seemed to trust in each other explicitly, leading to teamwork that was simply amazing to watch. They were also the only guild to be known for using «Combination Attacks»; a technique that combined multiple sword skills in quick succession in order to deal out massive amounts of damage. Kirito and Asuna themselves tended to work in combination much of the time, and along with the other girls, they seemed almost able to clear the floor bosses by themselves.

A slow murmuring spread throughout the gathered crowd as a group of figures approached steadily from the back. The crowd parted to make way for the newer arrivals, causing the player leading them to sigh. Dressed in a rather formal black uniform, trimmed with gold, Kirito attracted much of their attention. Trailing behind him, seemingly engaged in conversation was four girls, all of them ignoring the eyes of the crowd - they were already used to the attention.

One last reason why Kirito was so well known amongst the players was quite simple. When you constantly had four insanely cute girls constantly vying for your attention... you tended to attract a significant amount of attention.

* * *

The large meeting chamber was an unused room within the white stoned cathedral, and it provided more than enough room for the group of clearers. With their numbers being somewhere around 100, it was rare to find an area indoors that could fit them, this chamber must have been scouted earlier this week - likely a work of the meticulous Heathcliff.

Situated in the middle of the large chamber was a round table made of stone that could have comfortably sat a good dozen players. There was an unspoken message left in the air, and everyone parted to clear room for the 'leaders' to sit.

Kirito stepped up first, taking a seat at the table, and immediately Argo and Asuna took their places by his side, standing at attention. The two official vice-leaders of the guild, they were a common sight when dealing with the «Royal Swords». Dressed in a uniform consisting of white and black as the two primary colours, and trimmed with gold, they looked the part of a royal escort. Standing slightly behind them, not quite amongst the crowd, Silica and Lisbeth waited patiently, understanding the rather troublesome formalities.

Heathcliff followed next, the red clad figure walked around the table to sit directly across from him, and trailing him was a rather surprising player. Blue eyes met his own black orbs and he acknowledged Diabel with a nod. The player had shaped up considerably since the first floor, now being much more humble and open to the others around him. He had been one of the first swayed by Heathcliff's considerable presence and had been there when the «Knights of the Blood» was founded. Taking his place at Heathcliff's right, Diabel nervously shifted when he caught Asuna and Argo glaring at him - they had never really forgiven him for that stunt back on the first floor.

Three more players stepped out from the crowd, the one leading had a mop of dark red hair and a stern face. He was known as Ryuken, the 'official' leader of the «Divine Dragon Alliance», and was known for having a very fierce personality. Trailing behind him were the two co-founders of the DDA, Sansa and Malik, both of which were known players in the MMO scene. They were all equipped with the signature styled armour the DDA were known for; a heavy set of grey and dark blue plate armour. His armour made a loud clanking sound as he sat down in between the other two guild leaders.

The three leaders looked across at each other with mutual respect, knowing that each of them were worthy of it. There was no bad blood between any of them, as they had already fought by each others' side numerous times. If there was any guild that the DDA held any moderum of respect for, then it was the «Royal Swords» and to a lesser extent the «Knights of the Blood». Kirito himself had to admit that the other two at the table were very respectable in their own right, as Ryuken was competent enough to lead a full division of his guild at the same time, while Heathcliff could inspire with just his words alone. He couldn't help but be wary of Heathcliff however, as no one knew anything about the enigmatic KoB leader, and the way that he carried himself... seemed just a bit off.

Seeing that no one else wanted to speak first, the leader of the knights chose to speak first. Clearing his throat, he spoke firmly to the gathered players, gathering everyone's' immediate attention.

"Welcome, my fellow clearers. The boss strategization meeting for the 24th floor will now commence." His tone was captivating as it was strong, his expressionless face seemed to radiate a sense of importance. "Before we begin however, I believe we need to address some rather distressing events that I was informed about from those below."

'Those below' likely referred to the mid-tiered players that usually stayed a good several floors away from the front lines. Kirito frowned, already having a good inkling of what the 'events' in question were. There was really only one type of danger in the lower floors after all.

"Sometime yesterday, I received another report about a mass PKing." His expression was now grim, mouth setting into a thin line.

Kirito heard several gasps behind him, and immediately loud murmurings spread through the assembled crowd. Another mass pking... which would mean that it was related to the one from last month. A particularly gruesome massacre that left only one survivor; a poor girl that was traumatized from the experience, barely remembering anything from the event. The brutal killing seemed to be perpetrated by an orange guild; a guild focused on killing other players. The only thing they knew about the guild was that they wore cloaks that hid most of their features and that they liked to target small groups.

"Is it related to the previous one?" Ryuken spoke up grimly from his right. Even if his guild only focused primarily on its own members, even he could not overlook something as sickening as a mass PK.

"I'm afraid so... we have multiple reports confirming it. Suspiciously cloaked individuals were spotted all around the area." His words caused the players to erupt into angry shouts, everyone seeing the issue with having orange players on the loose.

"Is there anything we can do?" Kirito heard Asuna ask worriedly from his left, and inwardly pondered the same thing.

"I'm afraid not." Holding a hand to stall any protests, Heathcliff immediately continued. "We know next to nothing about this guild, no motive and no pattern that we can discern. They seem to be attacking floors at random, and we have no faces or names to go by."

"But, surely we can do _something_ right? The other players..."

There was a problem that resulted in being trapped in SAO; the complete and utter lack of authority. Sure most of the players had a good sense of morals, and kept conflicts to a minimum due to a general understanding of their situation. Even then, any major disputes were usually settled with a duel.

But for those without moral... there was no higher authority in Aincrad than those who were gathered in this very room. In this game, any conflict could be resolved with a sword after all.

"We need more information." The leader of DDA spat out. "If we only knew where they were..."

"Then what?"

Glaring at Heathcliff, Ryuken slammed an armoured fist onto the table. "We destroy them!"

His shout caused many in the crowd to shift nervously, as the thought of killing another player did not sit well with them. Still, there was a few that silently agreed, already regarding the PKers as monsters.

"How foolish." Heathcliff clasped his hands lightly, regarding Ryuken with a steely gaze. "Trying to stop the PKing with more killing... what a waste."

The DDA leader bristled in anger. "What do you propose then!? Leave them be?"

"Of course not, but before we turn into murderers ourselves, how about we start with some negotiations Hm?" Meeting the glare with his own impassive gaze, Heathcliff was emotionless as Ryuken looked away. "After all... nobody decides to just _kill_ without reason."

Kirito silently disagreed with that statement, but didn't voice his opinion. The atmosphere was now quite tense as the audience did not know what to do in this situation. Red clad members of the KoB seemed to be glaring at the large portion of armoured DDA soldiers. The DDA members were also bristling with anger, and even their vice-leaders were glaring.

"How about you?"

The question came from one of the vice-leaders of DDA, and Kirito vaguely recalled him as Sansa, the one in charge of the DDA dungeon clearing groups. His helmet-clad form seemed to be glaring at him, and Kirito met his glare with a raised eyebrow.

"What does the famed 'Prince' have to say about all of this?" His question caused many of the audience to look his way, finally noticing that he had not said a word during the short discussion.

He felt Asuna and Argo shift besides him, likely in anger, but he answered before they could start a scene. "Well... I think we need to focus more on protection."

Everyone blinked at his answer. "Instead of trying to figure out who the PKers are, how about we have a few clearers tag along with those below?"

"Then when the orange guild attacks..." Heathcliff caught on to his train of thought. "The clearers should be enough to hold them off."

"While the rest of us arrive to detain them if needed, and the levelers will remain safe." Kirito finished with a small smile. He highly doubted that a bunch of orange players, no matter how many, could finish off the clearers in time before reinforcements would arrive. "Of course, there's the matter of volunteers, as we will have to invest quite a few players for this."

"We'll do it!"

The voice came from behind Kirito, and he had to turn to see who had spoken. He sighed as he saw the speaker, smiling wryly at the disheveled look of the player.

"My guild will gladly volunteer, as we were going to sit out this boss fight anyways." He had messy pink hair with a scarf that acted as a bandana. His name was Kelin, the leader of the guild Fuurinkazan. He had a big smile on his face when he saw Kirito looking at him, giving him a big thumbs up. "We might need more players though, since my guild isn't nearly big enough."

Conversations immediately broke out throughout the crowd, and several other players stepped up.

"I'll do it!"

"Me too!"

"My guild will help."

Ryuken looked around before sighing. "As will my guild." His statement was met with surprised glances as the DDA were known to be only focused on the front lines. He shared a few heated words with his vice-leaders, but it was drowned in the sound of the crowd.

"What about us Kirito-kun?" Asuna piped up quietly from his left. "Shouldn't we also help?"

He wanted to immediately point out how much attention they would bring, but was interrupted by Argo who spoke first. "Hmm, I think we can Asuna-chi, we just don't want to announce it."

Kirito did not like the gleam in Argo's eyes when she spoke, but couldn't voice his mind as everyone had quieted down. They all turned their attention back to the stoic Heathcliff who was waiting patiently.

"Good. Very good, I applaud all of you who have stepped up. It is imperative that we work together for a common cause such as this." As usual, his words were laced with charisma, and an undertone of pride. Kirito could not tell if it was faked. "We will have to work out the details later, but for now let us move on to the topic of our meeting, the clearing of the floor boss."

"Wait." Before Heathcliff could continue, he was interrupted by a familiar voice. Everyone turned to stare as the vice-leader of DDA spoke out. "Before we begin, I'd like to point out a few things."

"Very well..." Heathcliff gestured to let the player continue, and Kirito sighed.

"Our last boss fight... we lost two players." His grim tone caused the crowd to grow still, all of them recalling the boss of the 23rd floor. "Due to poor communication, two of our fellow comrades have died needlessly. I don't want to point fingers, but it is obvious that there is a flaw in our leadership."

There was no confusion in his statement, everyone in the room immediately knew he was referring to Kirito. They watched on tensely as Kirito met Sansa's stare with his own calm gaze. Many players had already erupted in protest, speaking out on behalf of him.

"Hey! Just what are you trying to say idiot!" Asuna shouted, glaring at the three DDA leaders who did not flinch.

The two players he was referring to had died because they tried to follow the lead of the «Royal Swords», charging into the boss when they were supposed to be waiting with the others. As such, when the large crab-like boss revealed its ability to cleave, the two newer players were caught. And when the boss had started summoning its minions, there was no room to assist the two misguided players. One of the players belonged to the DDA, and the other belonged to the KoB, both of which had tried to follow the lead of a different guild, despite previous warnings.

"Exactly what I meant _Flash_. The two deaths could have been easily prevented if we had a clear leader!"

His statement started a whole new wave of arguments as all of the players began to shout in protest. Three factions immediately formed within the span of seconds, each one representing the support behind their chosen guild. Silica and Lisbeth grew worried as the shouting began to rise in volume, but mostly they were worried for Kirito, who had been rather calm despite the situation.

He sighed deeply as he regarded the chaotic room. Everyone seemed to be on the verge of a fight as they exchanged harsh words. The only people who weren't descending into chaos seemed to be the three leaders and their vice-leaders. Although Asuna seemed to be glaring daggers at Sansa, while Sansa continued to glare his way. Meeting Heathcliff's blank stare, he shared a silent exchange.

"Argo, would you?" He reluctantly asked.

She smirked in response before manipulating her inventory. "Of course Ki-bou."

There was a loud -pop- followed by a huge dispersion of smoke that quickly stopped the arguments. The white smoke engulfed the room in seconds but did little else, and the players who had reflexively tensed eventually relaxed as they realized what had happened. Using a very low level **[Smoke Bomb]** to grab everyones attention proved to be successful as everyone turned to a clapping Argo.

"Alright everyone, thanks for showing us girls how to bicker, but could we get on with the meeting?" Her amused tone served to bring them down from their high-strung state, and they all turned to Kirito who looked ready to say something.

"Sansa was it?" Receiving a terse nod from the player, he continued. "What do you want us to do?"

Sansa blinked in surprise at Kirito's calm tone, as he sounded like he was genuinely curious. "I... I want a more unified leadership of course, someone we can all follow without hesitation." The unspoken message was 'someone not you'.

"Like who?" The voice of Heathcliff caused him to falter.

"Me."

Ryuken stood up swiftly, his large form served to remind the players why the intimidating figure commanded the largest amount of clearers in Aincrad. "It should be obvious isn't it? Our guild consistently makes up most of the front lines."

Although his statement was true, many could disagree as the DDA frequently hoarded the best leveling areas to themselves, and rarely joined the scouting parties that had the hard job of mapping out the dungeons. The only area the DDA had a major presence in was in the boss clearing party; where they consistently filled up to 4 full parties.

"Having the most amount of players does not make you the most suitable leader Ryuken, or have you forgotten what happened on the 18th floor?"

Kirito grimaced as he was reminded of the disaster of that floor. Giving the lead of a mix of solos and other guilds to the command of Ryuken was a disaster. Due to the unique nature of the boss fight; which consisted of two bosses instead of one, the group had decided to split and tackle each boss separately. Royal Swords and KoB for one boss, and the DDA with the rest for the other boss. A sound strategy at first, but when the mixed group couldn't keep up with the DDA members, they were left behind.

Ryuken, to his credit looked rightfully sullen at the mention of the 18th floor. "What happened to them was unfortunate, I agree, but obviously they were not ready to work with our strategies in mind."

Heathcliff regarded him impassively. "Then what would you expect of us if you were the 'official' leader? Have everyone join the DDA?"

"Wouldn't that be fine too?" The quiet voice came from Malik, the main organizer for the DDA, his calculative gaze swept through the crowd. "To have all of the clearers unite under one banner... I think that would be better."

A rather radical statement, if the voices were any indication. There were many who resented the DDA for their seclusive training tactics, and would never willingly join them.

"That will never happen. Our differences are too great."

The prideful nature of the knights, the strict presence of the alliance, and the elusive but regal status of the swords. The top three guilds would never work under one banner.

"And in terms of strength... would it not be us who should take the lead?" Heathcliff's statement was met with protests from the DDA members.

"You Knights may be strong Heathcliff, but we have over double your numbers!" Sansa shouted. "Even with your skill, our guild is undoubtedly stronger."

Another fight seemed to be brewing once more and Kirito shared a look with his two vice-leaders.

"That's not true." Diabel spoke up for the first time this meeting. "Even if you have more members, our average levels should be much higher."

He was speaking the truth, since when you had such a large amount of players leveling at the same time, the experience tended to be spread quite far apart. The knights would be higher leveled on average while the DDA would fall behind in terms of individual comparisons.

"That doesn't matter, so what if you have a few levels over us, we have the most high levels of any guild!"

The two glared at each other, seemingly eager to continue their argument.

"Enough."

Kirito spoke out firmly, his voice echoing through the chamber and silencing the budding arguments. "Let's stop arguing over whose guild is stronger and settle this so we can move on."

"You want an 'official leader', then let's vote, whoever wins will have complete command during a boss fight, nothing more. Agreed?"

Everyone reluctantly settled down, seeing the logic behind his words. Even the DDA members grudgingly acknowledged the plan, seeing the fairness in it. Even Diabel and Sansa seemed appeased, confident that their guild would win.

"I have a different suggestion." Heathcliff interjected. "In light of the fact that the chosen leader should be the strongest, I propose that we settle the issue with a duel."

His words were met with a sudden, shocked silence. By suggesting a duel... which would meant that they would see the two rumoured strongest players of SAO fight. Silence turned into excited murmuring as everyone imagined the fight between the most powerful front liners.

"Are you sure?" Diabel whispered lowly to his leader. "Kirito... he is strong."

"I'm no weakling myself Diabel."

"I know that Leader-sama, but Kirito is different. " Looking over at the leader of the Swords, he was reminded of his immense strength personally. "When he duels... its on another level."

Surprisingly, Heathcliff almost smiled at the prospect. "Then I look forward to it."

Kirito himself furrowed his brows at Heathcliff, trying to understand why he had chosen a more violent direction when the option of voting was on the table. Heathcliff had always seemed the type to avoid a direct confrontation if he could, therefore the act of bringing up a duel seemed slightly out of character for the enigmatic guild leader.

"Hehe, we have no problems with a duel Knight-san, but are you sure the rest of you are up to it?" Argo laughed confidently, annoying the other guilds immensely. She draped her arms around Kirito's neck lazily, jerking him out of his thoughts. "Our leader is quite strong ya know?"

Kirito sighed, but made no move to remove the hands around him. He stared resolutely down at Heathcliff, who met his stare with his own unmoving expression. "Very well, if that is what you would prefer... are you fine with this Ryuken?"

Everyone turned to look at the armoured leader. He sat back down with a grim expression on his face, and one could easily tell he was no longer confident "Of course..."

"Then its settled. We will have a duel to decide who will lead us."

* * *

"Wow Kirito, it sure looked rough in there huh?"

The Royal Swords all turned to see a the speaker; a familiar red haired figure that was leading a bunch of other players.

"Well well, if it isn't Mr. '22 and single'." Argo greeted with a smirk. "Still planning on applying for the Royal Jester job?"

"Urk..." Klein flinched, inwardly weeping. "Will you stop calling me that!?"

Despite the laughter, everyone was glad to see him as he was a very friendly individual. They had met him clearing a dungeon a few floors back and he had connected well with Kirito. Klein did not know whether to grovel at Kirito's feat for having four extremely cute girls following him, or pity him as he witnessed him following their every whim subconsciously. He had ended up making it his personal mission to help Kirito along as he saw his amazing potential. If he did not have his guild mates to look after, he would have wholeheartedly followed Kirito.

"Hey Klein, nice to see you in one piece." Kirito smiled and exchanged pleasantries with the rest of Fuurinkazan. They were one of the few front-line guilds that he and the girls interacted with, since most of the others were often wary of them. Klein and his guild were unafraid of approaching them despite their aloof aura.

"It got kinda crazy in there huh? For a second I was afraid that Asuna-san would be jumping at that Sansa guy."

Asuna blushed lightly as she remembered her heated expressions. "That guy was so annoying! He kept glaring at Kirito-kun the whole time."

"Yea, what's his problem?" Lisbeth agreed. "It looked rather personal."

"I don't know myself." Kirito muttered, recalling that the player was incensed. "Maybe we disagreed sometime in the past?"

It wasn't impossible, as they had frequent conflicts with the DDA and to a lesser extent, the KoB over farming areas. None of them could really compete against the assertive nature of Asuna and Argo when they got heated however, and the conflicts often ended up in their favour.

"Still though, you seemed quite protective in there..." Klein noted with a hint of jealousy.

Argo caught on immediately with a grin. "Like a housewife right? Fufufu~"

"S-stop that."

Lisbeth and Silica shared a smile as Asuna started blushing, the usually regal figure of The Flash was reduced to a nervous wreck when they teased her about Kirito.

"But Asuna-chi, you were practically hovering over him."

"Well I was worried!"

Kirito rubbed his neck and looked away with a small smile on his face. He knew that Asuna liked to look after him, knowing how much he disliked the amount of attention he got at times.

"About the duels Kirito, are you sure you want to go through with it?" Klein had a somewhat serious expression on his face. "Because you've been leading us steadily for the past 24 floors or so, I'm sure no one can really dispute your role."

If Kirito remained in leadership, the majority of the players would be completely behind him, but it was the vocal minority, and the influence of the large guilds that would make things much harder than necessary.

"If it will satisfy everyone, then I will do it. I've also noticed a lot of tension in the recent floors, and if this will solve some of it then so be it." Kirito stated firmly. Personally, he wanted to avoid the duels as he knew it would either resolve some of the building anger, or make it even worse. It wasn't a matter of simply stepping down either, as he knew many of the front liners preferred his leadership, and stepping down would cause another rift in itself. Not to mention his guild would kill him for conceding the leadership role so easily.

"If its Kirito-kun, then it should be fine right?" Silica worriedly asked, absently stroking her pet dragon that was curled around her neck. She knew he was incredibly strong, but she had never seen him in a duel.

"I wonder about that... you won't lose right Kirito?" Lisbeth was of the opinion that Kirito still held himself back somewhat, knowing that he always kept an eye out for all of them, ready to help at a moments notice. She appreciated his care, and felt safer with him at her side than anywhere in SAO, but couldn't help but wonder if they were dragging down his potential.

"Of course Kirito-kun won't lose!" Asuna huffed, crossing her arms. "...Right Kirito-kun?" She added, staring at him with worry in her eyes.

"I won't." He smiled, touched by how much the girls seemed to care for him. "If it's a duel of swords, then I don't think I'll lose."

Argo smiled secretly to herself, wondering if she should reveal one of Kirito's last hidden secrets to the rest of the girls. There was a reason why she was supremely confident of Kirito's victory after all.

"Ahhh! Look at how much all of these girls care for you Kirito!" Klein shouted in disbelief, gripping at his head. "How do you do it man?!"

Kirito sighed as Klein prostrated himself in front of him. "Teach me Kirito-sama!"

The girls all giggled while his fellow guild mates all palmed their faces in exasperation.

"Come on idiot leader, we're going to train today remember?" One of the members of Fuurinkazan started dragging Klein away by his feet.

"W-wait! Argo!" Klein struggled briefly, and even more of his guild mates came to drag him along, treating him like a captured fish. "You said if I became a Jester- Wait! - then you'd -Put me down! - introduce me right?!"

They all watched as he was dragged kicking and screaming out of the chamber, making quite a scene.

Kirito looked at Argo with a raised eyebrow.

"What?"

* * *

A perfectly cool breeze, coupled with the warmth of the afternoon sun, gave the entire area a sense of relaxation. Nearby, a river flowed slowly, filling the air with the soft sounds of running water. Lying underneath a nearby tree, to complete the picturesque scene of tranquility, was the figure of a certain black-haired boy. Mouth slightly opened, chest rising to the tempo of the rustling leaves, the sleeping person seemed to be at peace with the world.

"He's way too relaxed..."

Several pairs of eyes stared at the sleeping boy, each wondering at just how at peace he seemed.

"And Pina too." Asuna mumbled longingly. The blue feathery dragon seemed to be sleeping contentedly curled up on Kirito's chest. Ever since Silica had tamed the dragon she had been trying unsuccessfully to befriend it. It seemed that the dragon only liked Kirito and Silica as he would duck and hide from any other players.

"I know, shouldn't he be training? He's going up against _that_ player after all."

"What do you mean Lis-chan?" Silica looked at her curiously. "What's so special about Heathcliff-san?"

"You mean you haven't heard the rumours?" Seeing the smaller girls confused look, she grinned sheepishly. "Oh, I forgot that you don't spend much time among the merchant districts."

Silica tended to avoid the large player base ever since she had gotten Pina. She had become something of an infamous character, and especially due to her tiny stature, and cute looks. They tended to swarm her when she went out alone, and only the presence of Kirito or surprisingly Asuna stopped them.

She pouted. "You know I can't stand the crowds..."

"Ah, my bad. Anyways, Heathcliff is actually a really well-known player, probably even up there with Asuna... or you." Lisbeth smiled at her cute expression of helplessness. "We've fought beside him after all- Wait, shouldn't you know how strong he is? You are a shield user too."

"Uhm...I don't really pay attention to the others during a boss fight..." The shorter girl admitted with a blush.

Lisbeth just smiled in response. "It's quite heated most of the times isn't it?"

It was understandable after all, as they were the group primarily engaging the bosses head on. They had no room to make errors or look out for the rest of the raid. Silica who had the unfortunate role of taking most of the bosses' attention, had to make sure she stayed focused at all time.

"Even in the boss fights, Heathcliff has a huge presence, you know he commands most of the KoB, but even the other clearers listen to him." Silica nodded absently, she did recall that most of the groups were well-organized even in the heat of battle. "But what really makes him stand out as a strong player is the fact that he has never gone below half health.

Silica's eyes widened in shock. "Not even once?"

"None." Every rumour stated the same thing, they had never seen his health bar drop that low even in a long boss fight. "That's why he is known as Heathcliff «The Unbreakable», because ever since he joined us on 10th floor, he has never retreated or backed down from anything."

In a boss fight or a dungeon party, Heathcliff was known to take the lead in every confrontation, and he often came out better than those that joined him.

"Heathcliff «The Unbreakable» huh?"

The two girls turned their head to see an amused Argo heading towards them. "Argo-chan!"

"Heya, couldn't help but hear your rumouring, didn't think you girls were the gossiping type." She smirked when they looked away. "But no worries, Argo is here!"

If you wanted to know whether or not a rumour was true, there was no better person in SAO to ask then Argo «The Thief», or «The Rat» when you were dealing with her merchant persona.

Silica and Lisbeth shared a look before looking to the mousy girl. "So? Is it true?"

"Indeed. They are all true, that player is really scary strong, much like Ki-bou." The nonchalant way she announced it made the girls curious.

"You don't seem very worried Argo-chan... Kirito-kun is going to have a hard time if the rumours are true." Lisbeth herself was quite worried for the sleeping boy. It was more than just a position of leadership on the line, it was about the future. There was no person that gave her more strength than Kirito, and if he wasn't there to lead them... then she couldn't help but feel that their chances would be lowered.

"Fufufu~ You shouldn't doubt Ki-bou like that Lisbeth-chan." Seeing her incoming protest, Argo continued. "You have nothing to worry about after all, he won't lose."

"Why are you so sure Argo-chan?" Silica didn't understand why the mousy girl seemed so confident.

"Because, Ki-bou has ne-"

"Argo-sama!"

Twin voices yelled from behind the gathered girls and they all turned to see two figures jogging up to them.

As the two figures came closer, they were revealed to be two girls, each wearing the royal uniform of the «Royal Swords». One had shoulder-length blue hair with brown eyes, and her hair was decorated with a **[Rose Flower]** hair accessory. The girl beside her had short black hair and brown eyes, and decorated with a similar **[Lily Flower] **hair accessory. Judging by their familiar features, one could easily tell that they were twins.

"Hello~" Argo greeted with a slight gleam in her eyes. "Have you done it?"

The two eagerly stopped in front of her, ready to talk when they noticed the interested looks from the rest of the girls. They shared a look and dragged Argo away to a secluded area, all the while giving them apologetic looks.

"What are they doing?" Asuna who had finally broken out of her trance-like watch over Kirito and Pina, finally joined them.

"We don't know... but judging by her smirk, it's not going to be good."

The three girls all shared a collective sigh as they thought back to the suffering they had under Argo. She was simply too much sometimes, making her secondary hobby the goal of embarrassing them as much as she could. Luckily her target seemed to be Kirito most of the time, but they often got caught in the crossfire.

Looking at the two twins by Argo's side, Asuna couldn't help but smile as she remembered how they had introduced themselves. Rosy and Lily were a pair of twin sisters who had stayed in the starting city, scared to go out and risk themselves. As the days continued and their despair grew, they were ready to give up when they heard the news; a group had cleared the first floor. Stepping onto the second floor and marvelling at the new city, they had decided to find out everything they could about the 'heroes' of the first floor.

When they had heard about the rumours of the «Royal Swords», they jumped onto it, eventually leading to Argo. Seeing the pleading expressions on their faces, Argo had taken them under her wing, gladly teaching them the ways of selling and trading information. The twins in return took to the lessons with vigor, happy to finally be able to do something in this death game. Eventually, they had realized that the person they were speaking to actually belonged to the party that had helped clear the boss.

With the creation of the guild on the third floor, the twins had begged Argo to join, seeing the potential of the guild, and wanting to help. As Argo was the appointed 'recruiter' of the guild, she invited them and had them serve under her as helpers. They proved to be very effective at gathering information, and were seen as much more approachable than the other members of the Swords. None of them protested the twins joining, as they saw both of them as very hard working players who wanted a place to belong.

The twins were very grateful for the chance, but had seemingly taken the guild name to heart. They referred to them all with a very respectful tone, aware of the risks they were taking on the front lines. Despite the girls' attempts at including the two, the two liked to support them from afar, seemingly acting like servants. They also had a rather intriguing way of interacting with Kirito, or rather _not _interacting with Kirito.

"What's going on?"

The tired voice came from behind them causing several of them to shriek in surprise.

"Kirito!" Holding her hands to her chest, Asuna took in shaky breaths. "Stop doing that!"

Smiling sheepishly, Kirito rubbed the back of his neck nervously. "Ah, sorry..."

The other girls all smiled, all of them knowing it was a regular occurrence with him. He always moved with incredible grace, often making no noise at all. It seemed it affected Asuna the most, since the girl was rather scared of surprises or the unknown.

Argo seemed to have finished talking with the twins, and started making her way back to the group. She smiled upon seeing Kirito, while the twins trailing her blushed while avoiding their gaze.

Kirito looked on with a faint smile, wondering interesting new information she had ready for them. The twins were especially good at gathering the most far-fetched rumours that surprisingly ended up true. They had already gone on several interesting trips so far due to the rumours, and the rewards seemed to be correct each time.

"Ki-bou~" Argo latched onto his arm immediately.

"Hey." Kirito was rather unaffected at this point, though he noticed the small glares from the rest of the girls. "What do you have for us now?"

He was referring to whatever rumour or information that had her in such a happy state.

"Well~ I just happened upon a most interesting bit of news!" She exclaimed. "In fact, I think you'll like it Asuna-chi."

Asuna glanced at her worriedly, not liking her track record with rumours.

"Do you want to tell them Rosy-chan, Lily-chan?"

Kirito looked at the two blushing twins, and they seemed to curl into themselves under his stare. He absently scratched his cheek as he wondered why they always seemed so flustered when he tried to interact with them. Before he could open his mouth to say a greeting they both bowed lowly in his direction.

"Good luck!"

The group watched with slight confusion and befuddlement as the twins rushed away from them.

Argo simply smiled. "Well, guess not then."

"Hah... out with it Argo-chan." Lisbeth said in exasperation, seeing the wary look in Asuna's eyes.

"Hehe, I guess I might as well. You know that sub-leader from the DDA?"

Asuna's eyes suddenly glinted. "Yes?"

"Well it turns out, he is in fact going to be fighting for them in the duel tomorrow." She finished with a knowing grin.

The rest of the group all shared a worried look. Looking towards Asuna she seemed to be shaking a bit, and Kirito felt a rather cold feeling run down his spine.

"Kirito-kun?" Asuna called out slowly.

"Yes?" He began warily, slowly stepping away from her. Pina the pet dragon seemed to curl even deeper around his neck, suddenly feeling a killing intent in the air.

"I'm fighting in your place."

* * *

There was a sense of restless excitement in the air, and as Kirito led the group into the arena, he couldn't help but marvel at the number of spectators.

Situated just a few minutes away from the main city was the ruins of an ancient colosseum. The giant structure had definitely seen better days, as half of the stadium was in disrepair, seemingly collapsing under the strain of time. The other half of the situation seemed to be completely fine except for some cracked parts of the seats.

It seemed that the entirety of the front-lines, and those players willing to leave the safety of the city had arrived to see the duels. He had no doubt that the rumours had been spread far and wide across aincrad, and judging by the myriad of players, he guessed that the rumours had been overblown tremendously.

As soon as he stepped into the main area, the noise of the crowd picked up considerably. Ignoring the pointing and staring, the group made their way to the middle of the large arena; where several figures could be seen. There was Heathcliff and two others by his side; Diabel and another grimacing figure. The DDA representatives seemed to be only Ryuken and Sansa, both of which seemed to be talking to each other in heated tones.

Making his way over to the gathered leaders, Kirito exchanged a nod with Heathcliff and Diabel. The two DDA members had finally noticed their presence and ceased their arguments. Ryuken gave him a stiff nod while Sansa continued his glaring from yesterday.

"Finally. We can begin."

Sansa stepped up aggressively, sneering down at Kirito before donning his helmet. "Let's get this started _prince._"

Before Kirito could even respond, the graceful form of Asuna stepped in front of him, regarding the taller figure of Sansa with a cool glare.

He faltered slightly before glaring back. "And what's this? Getting one of your girls to fight for you? How pathetic."

The large crowd of spectators seemed to pick up on the tense situation, if their murmuring were any indication.

"What's the matter DDA-san? Are you scared?" Argo retorted in a teasing voice.

"Tsch, as if I would be scared of a girl!" His voice made several of them narrow their eyes at him. "I just think its a disgr-"

One moment Asuna was cooly regarding him with a glare, the next she had her rapier pressed against his forehead. "Shut up and fight."

There was a few tense seconds before he scowled, backing away from her. "Fine!"

Seeing that the fight was about to begin, everyone made for the stands while leaving the two players on the arena. The group gave her some words of good luck, Kirito sharing a look of understanding with her.

**[You have accepted a 1-on-1 duel with Sansa]**

Asuna seemed the picture of calm while she stared down at her opponent. Sansa seemed to be glaring murderously at her, but even he was unnerved at her calmness.

**30...**

**29...**

The duel mode that Asuna had selected was the «First Strike Mode», where the victor would be determined by either landing the first clean hit or reducing your opponent's HP to half. What was determined as a 'clean hit' was very precise, as a normal slash from a sword would not register. The hit had to deal a significant amount of damage, in other words, the blow had to deal a critical portion of hp.

**10...**

**9...**

Sansa suddenly smirked as he decided to finally pull out his choice of weapon. A giant blade of bone, the hilt being in the shape of a skull, appeared in his hands, and Asuna looked on in slight shock. The weapon was familiar to her as it was dropped by the 20th floor boss. **[Bone Vengeance]** was a rare drop by the skeleton boss, and Argo had bemoaned her loss at not being able to acquire it. It was rumoured to be the strongest 2hander found so far, and had an insane STR requirement.

Asuna frowned at the confident look in her opponents face. His strategy was likely to overpower her with the 2hander's unique property of overcoming most blocks and parries. He would be in for a rude awakening however.

**3...**

**2...**

**1...**

Asuna dashed forward with insane speed, causing her armoured opponent to react in surprise. Her dash ended in a thrust, and her rapier met the flat side of the large weapon in a shower of sparks.

Sansa barely reacted in time for her first attack, and before he could get his bearings Asuna began her barrage. A second thrust, followed by a third, a fourth, and finally becoming uncountable as her attacks became a blur.

Asuna «The Flash».

Her moniker proved to be quite true, and to the excitement of the crowd, her opponent seemed to be struggling severely. Sansa was being pushed back steadily, the only thing saving him was the size of his sword making it somewhat easy to block her thrusts. He gritted his teeth in annoyance and slight panic. The speed of her attacks were insane!

Desperately hoping to break away from her assault, he leapt backwards and activated a sword skill; **[Savage Impact]**. The high leveled 2handed sword skill made his weapon glow red, and in a feat of strength, he swung it directly at the ground in front of him. To his luck, Asuna was hit somewhat by the impact, and the girl was thrown backwards.

Recovering swiftly, the girl narrowed her eyes at the cloud of dust that had been kicked up. She knew he was likely in a 'frozen' state due to executing the high leveled sword skill, but it would be foolish charging into the unknown.

Her instincts proved to be correct as Sansa charged out of the smoke with a roar, sword held ready for a horizontal swing. He knew that he had gotten lucky with the cloud of dust as he had been stuck waiting in the relatively long cooldown state. To a skilled opponent like Asuna, he would have been hit several times.

"Hah!"

Swinging his sword from the side with a speed that would be fatal to most players, he was mildly shocked when Asuna deftly lept over the strike. To his credit, he did not falter, and followed the momentum of the swing, coming around for a second strike. His whirlwind manoeuvre did not work to his satisfaction as Asuna crouched under the second swing.

Grunting as Asuna left several stabs into his armour, which thankfully did not end the fight. He swung once more, getting the lithe girl to leap back out of range. The two regarded each other with determination, trying to decide the next move. Sansa had to admit that the girl was much more skilled than he had imagined, as even with his high STR stat combined with the best armour you could buy, he had still lost more than a quarter of his health.

The only thing stopping Asuna from taking the fight easily was because she did not use her sword skills, knowing that he only needed one hit from his 2hander to end the fight. The swing from such a weapon would bypass any attempts of parrying, and she did not know if she could get a clean hit through all of his armour.

"Will you give up?" She asked him suddenly.

Sansa's face scrunched up in anger. "What?!"

"Give up." Asuna repeated. "It'll be better for you that way."

Gritting his teeth in absolute anger, Sansa let out a roar once more and began a series of hazardous swings at Asuna. The vice-leader of the Swords did not falter however, and she stepped out of the range of each swing. She was being slowly pushed back towards the wall, and he smirked inwardly. All he needed was one mistake- one misstep, and he would show her!

The crowd watched on with baited breath, each of them waiting for one of the players to slip.

Asuna showed no signs of faltering, merely flashing her rapier every now and then, but failing to reach Sansa. Her sword met the side of his blade multiple times, but each time it glanced off it without any effect. By now the wall was closing ominously close, and soon there would be no room for Asuna to manoeuvre with.

Stepping back, Asuna suddenly tripped on a piece of rubble.

"_Heres my chance!"_

Gripping his large sword tightly, he began the motions for his most powerful sword skill once more. The red glow of **[Savage Impact]** enveloped his sword, and he grinned in anticipation, there would be no dodging this one.

Asuna did not fall.

Sansa's eyes widened in shock as the girl merely crouched low, rapier held back in preparation.

"_Could she be..."_

All too quickly, the scene suddenly came together for him. The girl who had been striking repeatedly at his sword the entire battle. The fact that she never tried to move out of range completely, always just barely out of range and encouraging him to continue his swings. The angle was perfect for Asuna.

Her sword glowed a brilliant blue, and she struck out with her highest leveled sword skill.

The sound of his great sword shattering into pieces was met with a stunned silence.

Sansa collapsed in a state of shock, disbelief evident on his face. "I...lost."

Sudden clapping and cheering came from a section of the stand where Asuna's guild members were, and she smiled. The crowd broke out of their shock and began to cheer with fervor, the fight they had just witnessed was simply incredible.

Regarding the distraught player in front of her, Asuna huffed before heading towards her friends.

"Just a girl huh?"

* * *

It was a short while after, that the main attractions of the event made their way out to the centre. The two were highly distinguishable, and the crowd suddenly hushed as the two met in the middle, facing each other.

Having two of the most individually famous players dueling each other was simply a sight to see. The crowd was filled with soft murmurs, each of them referring to some rumour or odd fact about the two players in question.

Kirito met Heathcliff's impassive stare with his own. The man in front of him made for a rather intimidating sight, dressed in full red and white uniform. Equipped with a longsword and a white tower shield, Heathcliff completed his image of being an unmatched «Tank».

The smaller figure opposing him was not intimidating in the least if you only looked at his appearance. Dressed in the black uniform of his guild, trimmed lightly with gold, Kirito looked the part of a noble swordsmen. It was when you took in his calm expression, the way he held himself, and the unwavering aura that surrounded him, that you knew he was not just a normal player.

"So, the famed «Prince» of Aincrad at last." Heathcliff began with a light tone. "I have been looking forward to this duel."

"Coming from the leader of the Knights himself, that is quite a statement." Kirito responded in kind. "I have also been looking forward to this."

Despite his thoughts on how pointless the conflicts seemed, the idea of fighting a strong opponent was nonetheless appealing to him. He did have his competitive side after all, and ever since his Kendo days, he had always looked forward to a promising fight.

Fighting the strongest shield-user in the game would prove to be interesting, as even he didn't know what the results would be. From what he had seen of Heathcliff in action, he concluded that breaking through his defense was likely impossible. Using sword skills would likely prove to be fatal for him, since his shield would mitigate most of the damage, leaving him wide open.

"Shall we?" Heathcliff smiled slightly.

Selecting the «First Strike Mode» option, Kirito relaxed as the familiar countdown began.

"Before we begin, I would like to ask you something." Seeing Heathcliff's acknowledging nod, he continued. "This duel... It's not your style. You've been pretty passive ever since you came onto the front lines, resolving most conflicts with just words."

Heathcliff's way with words was simply amazing to see in action, with just words alone he could dissolve a fight before it even began. It wasn't out of the question for Heathcliff to resolve the leadership issue with just his reasoning.

"What changed?"

Heathcliff took in the question silently, seemingly thinking on it.

**20...**

**19...**

"It's interesting isn't it?" He began, his tone was oddly wistful. "This duel of ours... an astonishing contest of wills. Isn't that why we are here?"

His words resounded deeply with Kirito, and he frowned in response, there was something _odd _about his statement. There was no time to think on it more however, as the timer slowly counted down.

**5...**

**4...**

Kirito closed his eyes, body moving into a readying stance, drawing his chosen sword. Opening his eyes, he regarded Heathcliff with an expressionless face. Impossible to read, and completely unnerving, he made for quite an intimidating sight.

Heathcliff did not react.

**2...**

**1...**

Unlike Asuna's aggressive beginning in her duel against Sansa, Kirito did not dash immediately towards heathcliff. Instead, his calm and steady sprint towards the knight leader was equally as daunting.

If the crowd was disappointed by the unimpressive start, then their opinions quickly changed once Kirito fell into attack range.

His black sword met Heathcliff's own white sword in an equal exchange, seemingly even in strength. They stood still for a split second before Kirito continued his attack, transitioning into a slash in the opposite direction. It was blocked readily by Heathcliff's tall shield, and the knight retaliated by lashing out with his sword.

Kirito stepped expertly to the right, and began his offensive.

The black blade in his hands became a blur as he rained down blows onto his opponent's shield. Heathcliff blocked the blows without hesitation, and his shield barely moved despite the power behind each slash. As he tried to retaliate, he realized that Kirito was moving, slowly circling around him while keeping up with his assault. If he faltered for even a moment, then he would be wide open.

Even the infamous «Unbreakable» defense of his would fail eventually, with every blow taking the slightest bit of HP away. Taking a gamble, Heathcliff thrust out his shield in a bash, connecting rather solidly with Kirito.

As expected, Kirito barely faltered before recovering, but the damage had been done, and Heathcliff was now more than ready to defend against him. There would be no way to enter that pace again.

Heathcliff stood at the ready, this time preparing by positioning his shield closer to his center. He looked at Kirito with an expectant expression on his face.

Meeting the silent challenge, Kirito dashed towards him, sword poised to meet his opponents. As they met, Heathcliff attempted a slash in order to force him to parry, but to his surprise, Kirito merely tilted his body sideways. Kirito's swords glowed a bright blue, going through the motions of a mid-leveled sword skill; **[Vertical Square]**. The attack landed solidly onto Heathcliff's shield, and to Kirito's annoyance, it was quite ineffective, his opponent's HP barely moving.

Heathcliff's retaliatory strike left a red line across Kirito's cheek. Jumping back once more, both combatants took a small moment of reprieve, each deciding where to proceed.

"As expected of you Kirito-san, that Sword Skill was already in motion when you reached me." He was referring to how Kirito had prepared the special attack in advance in order to minimize the short time-frame in which he was left vulnerable.

Not everyone had the concentration and skill needed to prepare a sword skill during movement.

"I could say the same to you Heathcliff." Kirito replied lightly. "Your defense is simply amazing."

The two gave each other looks of respect before starting to slowly circle each other. They were both waiting for the other to either slip or start the offensive.

Heathcliff decided to initiate this time around, moving with surprising grace for his bulky figure. His shield led the way for him, and Kirito had to dodge to the side as there was simply no way for him to block the shield bash. The knight leader took the chance to strike out with his sword, and executed a sword skill; «Vertical Arc». His sword glowed green and slashed twice in quick succession.

Kirito blocked the two augmented slashes with his own sword, taking a hit of damage in the exchange. Retaliating with several strikes of his own, the lithe swordsmen forced Heathcliff back onto the defensive, setting the pace once again.

There was a major difference this time, as Heathcliff did not allow Kirito to manipulate his movements. Every now and then Heathcliff freely attacked with his sword, using a sword skill that forced Kirito to parry or move out of the way. Kirito could not take advantage due to the fact that the shield blocked his every retaliation and he could not use his more powerful sword skills as he would take much more damage than he could deal out.

A stalemate of sorts.

The two leaders continued their skillful exchange, with each clash ending in a close draw. To the spectators who watched in awe, the battle looked like a dance as the two players clashed in a fury of swords and broke apart only to restart the chain. Showers of sparks and the lights of sword skills being used were all most of the spectators could see.

To the trained eye however, it was clear that one player held an advantage over the other.

* * *

"Kirito-kun is in trouble..."

Asuna's statement caused several startled heads to turn her way. Silica who clutched Pina tightly to her chest looked up at her with widened eyes. "Why? Kirito-kun seems to be even with him."

It was true, when you counted the number of blows that got past the guards of the other player, they were mostly even. Both players suffered some light wounds here and there, with Kirito leading the way for the most part.

"It's because of his build Silica-chan." Argo chimed in. "Each time Ki-bou lands a hit, it hardly does any damage."

"But when Heathcliff lands a hit..." Lisbeth finished.

They all watched warily as the fierce exchanges continued. If Kirito kept this up then...

"I'm worried..." Asuna murmured. "Doesn't Kirito know?"

Argo hummed lightly. "Of course."

"Then what is he waiting for?" Silica asked in confusion.

"I think he's just enjoying himself."

As the group continued to watch on, they noticed that Kirito's previous blank expression had a faint smile. He was having fun.

"That idiot!"

Argo chuckled as the rest of the girls moaned, wondering how he could be having fun in such a serious match like this. "Relax girls."

Lisbeth huffed, placing a hand on her hips. "You've been confident ever since the duel was announced Argo-chan."

"Yea!" Silica agreed. "You never told us your reason yesterday."

All three girls turned to stare deeply at Argo who laughed and held up her hands in mock surrender. "Alright alright, fine, I'll tell you."

"The reason why I'm so confident is that..." She smirked as all of the girls leaned in to hear her answer. She wanted to tease them but decided to give them a break for the first time in a while.

"Ki-bou has never lost a duel in his life."

* * *

He couldn't continue like this.

Looking at his HP from the corner of eyes, he was dismayed to see it falling dangerously close to the halfway point. If he kept this up then he would simply lose even though Heathcliff never landed a direct blow onto him.

Staring at his opponent, and meeting his sword with his own, he grimaced when he noticed that Heathcliff's HP was sitting at a very safe green. He had not even chipped away 20% of his health. He had to give the man credit, as he had never met anyone who did not make a single mistake against his onslaught.

Parrying his opponents sword to the left, he surprised Heathcliff by moving directly into his guard. Before Heathcliff could take advantage and take advantage with a shield bash, Kirito's left hand suddenly flew up and struck him directly under the chin.

Heathcliff stumbled back due to the force of the blow and the crowd gasped. It was clearly a clean hit. As Heathcliff settled himself back into his defensive stance, they were shocked to see the fight still continue.

The Martial Arts skill «Stunning Blow» was something Kirito used in combination with one-handed sword skills to easily stun and defeat monsters. As it was an unarmed sword skill however, its damage was fairly low, not nearly enough to qualify for the 'clean hit' condition. It did serve to cause Heathcliff to flinch, giving him time.

Kirito opened up his game menu, surprising all of the spectators. Heathcliff frowned as he couldn't see any reason for the action. He was about to say something when something materialized in Kirito's left hand. The crowd all gasped in unison, all of them confused, but the few that knew Kirito suddenly understood.

A second sword.

The sound of the crowd was drowned out as Kirito wielded the two swords in his hand with a familiar grace. Facing Heathcliff once more, this time in a stance that was completely new.

Understanding suddenly dawned in his eyes, and Heathcliff suddenly smiled. He had been holding back the whole time.

Kirito smiled in return, before dashing forward. His speed was similar, but his movements were completely different.

Heathcliff chose to safe route, choosing to see what his opponent could do with two swords. He was not prepared for the onslaught that followed.

His right sword was thrusted with insane speed and the strike glanced off his shield, but before he could react, his left sword followed with the same speed. A flurry of stabs followed, and Heathcliff could do nothing but try and weather the attacks. Kirito's swords were a blur, and many noted the similarities between his attacks and Asuna's.

His health was slowly dropping, the sheer speed and ferocity of the attacks bypassed the incredible defense his shield provided. It was much like trying to defend against the fury of a boss mob.

Deciding to try and break out of the offensive, Heathcliff struck out with a piercing sword skill; «Fierce Line». His fast stab was parried by Kirito's sword, and before he knew it he had been stabbed by his opponent's other sword.

The regular attack could not pierce his armour, but as Kirito deftly backed up to renew his attack, Heathcliff knew he was at a lost.

With such an incredible offense, Kirito could not be attacked, for every moment that he threw into an attack was one that gave Kirito the opportunity to retaliate. He had no doubt who would be the victor if he did not have his shield and armour.

Yet he continued, bracing himself under the rain of swords, striking out with his swords to no effect.

The crowd had stood up, all of them cheering at the insane spectacle down below.

The battle was now under Kirito's control. Each encounter leaving Heathcliff's health noticieably lower.

To his credit, Heathcliff did not surrender, valiantly defending himself against the overwhelming show of power.

One mistake and it was over.

Heathcliff had brought his shield too high, partially blocking his own vision. Kirito immediately took advantage, and with unmatched agility, stepped into his opponent's blind spot. His swords immediately flowed into a patterned combo, leaving 7 red lines of damage accross his opponent's chest.

«Winner: Kirito!»

Over the deafening roar of the crowd, and the somewhat distinctive cheering of his guild members, was Heathcliff's words.

"As expected of the one-"

His words were drowned out over the renewed cheering, but as Kirito met Heathcliff's oddly satisfied eyes, he couldn't help but feel that something was off.

The feeling was pressed to the back as he was embraced from all sides from his girls.

* * *

A cloaked figure watched the proceedings with a calculative eye. The battle he had just witnessed was simply incredible, and as he watched the 'hero' become enveloped by his friends, he smirked.

A worthy opponent at last.

* * *

**A/N: Another 13k chapter... I really need to stop with that.**

**I definitely feel this chapter was too 'wordy'. Ah well.**

**Thanks for the reviews from last time everyone, definitely appreciate the support despite the interlude chapter.**

**So about this chapter... A glimpse into how Kirito's guild have affected the front lines. With them being regarded as the #1 guild in Aincrad. I'll be eager to see what you guys thought of the other two guilds, and the fights. **

**I'd also like to elaborate on why DDA and KoB were fighting over who was the strongest guild if the Swords are considered the strongest. Well, it's only because the Royal Swords are incredibly well known and individually strong that they are regarded as the strongest. Not many know that the Swords consist of a very small amount of members. In an actual 'guild battle' The KoB would probably win, but that doesn't mean the Swords would be easy to beat, quite the contrary as Argo and Asuna are pretty skilled at PvP. **

**I feel that this chapter went all over the place and had some unnecessary scenes. I really should get a beta sometime soon haha.**

**Thanks for reading!**

**Next Chapter: The Royal Disguise**

**Sidenote: I would like to thank everyone who visited the forums, there was definitely a huge growth. I would also like to encourage anyone who hasn't to go there, since we have several new authors who have some amazing story ideas. Seriously check it out, and help them perfect their ideas so that we can see some amazing new stories!**

**Also, we have some Omakes for this story, with one from Inconsipicous_Llama!**

**Omake #1 (By Inconsipicous_Llama):**

"**So, I was just rereading this story and that combined with Touma's comment a little ways up about there being a "high chance of a duel" in the next chapter got me thinking about how the Royal Swords would fair in PvP. Eventually this lead to wondering how Silica would fight in one on one matches with other clearers and this is the rather amusing (to me) mental image those thoughts spawned.**

**It's a 50/50 match and goes something like this..." -Llama**

_Silica stands across from her opponent, trying not to shiver as the countdown to her first PvP match draws ever closer to zero. She glances around the crowd nervously until she spots her guilds mates who smile warmly back and give her confident nods. Feeling some of her determination return, Silica turns her full attention to her spiky haired opponent who sneers back. The tiny tank ignores this and sets herself in a low, solid stance that Kirito showed her long ago so she wouldn't be overrun by larger and heavier NPCs, as well as strong enemy players. The countdown finally hits zero and she freezes when her opponent lets out a loud battle cry and charges._

_In a single fluid move Kibaou draws his long sword and it begins to glow yellow with the power of a sword skill. Only instinct saves Silica as she automatically raises her shield high to block the powerful overhead strike. She is jostled back to awareness by the impact but her inattentiveness costs her the opportunity to counter attack as she is sent stumbling back a few steps. She is barely set back in her stance when he is already upon her again, wildly swinging at her without any finesse. With shield raised high she weathers the assault, only loosing a sliver of health. All the while her mind works furiously on a strategy._

_She couldn't afford to use sword skills since her attack power was rather low. Even a direct hit wouldn't be enough, and would only leave her defenselessness to counter attack. Matching him directly in swordplay wasn't an option either. He didn't seem particularly skilled but he was fast and strong, not to mention a large advantage in reach due both their respective weapons and body sizes. Even if she managed to break into his guard Silica didnt think she would be fast enough to take advantage of the opportunity anyway, she was a strength and vitality build after all. That only leaves one option..._

_-Switch to Kibaou POV- _

_Kibaou knew he had this match in the bag from the beginning. As if some little girl from that royal bastards harem could fight a real man and win. Ha! All he had to do now was keep pushing her back and hammering at that shield until she slips up. Sure in his superiority, he reacts poorly to what happens next._

_Kibaou sends a strong horizontal slash at her, just like any other he sent her way in the past thirty seconds, but she reacts differently this time. Instead of just hiding behind her shield she uses it to bat the blow high. The sudden change surprises him so much that he is barely able to bring his sword back to guard as she steps forward and takes a shallow swing at his chest. Enraged at the midgets gall he redoubles his assault, only for the girls small green shield to again deflect his sword at an angle, forcing him a step back._

_Rather suddenly the tides shifted and his slow advance became a slow retreat as Silica continued to use her shield to create openings and Kibaou is forced to retreat to close them. The crowd is laughing for some reason, he isn't sure why but he IS sure that it's pissing him off! If he had been paying closer attention rather than just growing more and more enraged he might have might have noticed his health. He didn't however, so he was down to 70% before it turned yellow and caught his eye. He paused to gawk when he finally noticed. Where the hell was his health? She hadn't even hit him yet! His distraction costs him as her silver short sword scratches his stomach and takes another chip off the bar._

_An enraged Kibaou quickly regains his wits and attacks with a renewed vigor. It was only now that he was looking for it that he discovered what the crowd could see all along. Each time her shield came forward to knock his sword aside it would cover for a little flash of silver that would strike out at his shins. The damage was minuscule so the slight sting hadn't been noticeable to him in the heat of battle. That's why everyone was laughing? She must have been doing this the whole time to have worn his health down like this!_

_-Silica POV-_

_"Gah! Stupid little ankle biter, I'll teach you to mess with your betters!" His decliration was met only with a unnervingly steely glare that looked out of place on the innocent face, she'd have to thank Asuna for teaching her that later. The rude man had obviously discovered her strategy but was seeming to have trouble countering it. He tried to sneak in an attack low and her small form went lower. He tried striking high and she only had an easier time unbalancing him, all the while chipping away at his health with quick attacks at the feet and legs. He even tried dodging her strikes but that only served to delay the inevitable ad well as make him look like a dancing fool to the crowd, who laughed even harder at the sight._

_Finally, nearly two minutes in the fight is drawing near a close, barely above 50% of his health remains while Silica is still safely in the green. But a desperate Kibaou finally catches a lucky break. As she goes in for another low strike at his feet, one that should end the match, he manages to step on her blade, pinning it in place and ripping it from her grasp. Panicked, she looks up to find Kibaou leering down at her._

_"I told you I'd teach you a lesson" he said with a grin. "Royal Swords aint shit and now everyones gonna know it!" A smirking, Kibaou casually raises his arms high for an overhead strike and his long sword once again takes on the yellow glow of a powerful sword skill. Unfortunately for Kibaou, well, he's kind of an idiot. So he never saw it coming when an angry Silica backhanded him across the face with a hard green shield that sent him spilling to the ground and knocked him out cold, much to her satisfaction._

_The crowd bursts into applause and her guild runs in to congratulate her. But most importantly Silica gains a new nickname that day. One that will haunt her and amuse her friends until the end of Sword Art and beyond. She is Silica, The Ankle Biter!_

**Ah simply hilarious! Thanks Llama.**

**Omake #2 (Continuation of the scene from Chapter 4):**

_Kirito woke up feeling abnormally refreshed, it felt like he had woken up upon a bed of clouds, and he yawned tiredly, unwilling to rid the haze of sleep just yet. The familiar softness of the bed was amazing, and he felt as if he were sinking. The best part seemed to be the soft, silky feel of warmth that seemed to be embracing him from both sides._

_Wait._

_He hesitantly moved his left arm only to have the movement blocked as it seemed to be trapped between a pair of soft, perky mounds. He drew in a breath, gulping as he turned his head slowly, very slowly, to his left. Blinking violet eyes met his own startled black orbs and he struggled not to let out a yell as the figure clinging to his left gave off a cheshire grin before gripping him tighter to him._

_Turning his head back to the ceiling, he closed his eyes and hoped that this was all a dream. _

"_Ki-bou~ Good morning..." _

_So much for that idea as the girl clinging to him yawned cutely before snuggling deeper into his side. _

_He didn't reply as he suddenly felt something shift to his right. 'Don't tell me...'_

_Turning to his right, he saw light-brown hair tousled around the sheets, and as he saw the sleeping face of Silica he counted his blessing as it could have been much worse. Seeing her sleep curled up beside him was an adorable sight as she was lightly clutching at his shirt, and he would have smiled at the sight if not for the foreboding feeling in his gut._

_Sighing lightly and deciding to close his eyes, he ignored the feeling of Argo trailing her hands along his chest. He knew he would be in trouble soon enough, therefore he tried to enjoy the scant moment of peace, it was not like things could get any worse._

"_Argo, Sili-"_

_His black orbs met startled hazel ones, and before he could even open his mouth for a hasty explanation, another figure joined Asuna at the door. _

"_Asuna-chan, have you seen Kiri-"_

_Kirito cursed... inside of his head of course, and as he saw the fiery aura of anger erupt around the two girls, he tried not to whimper. _

**See you guys next time!**


	6. Chapter 6 The Royal Disguise

"«The Prince of Swords»... Oh wow!"

The girls all gathered over Lisbeth's shoulder to see what she was referring to. In her hands was the most popular newspaper in Aincrad; The World. On the cover of the paper was a rather close up photo of Kirito in his two-sword stance. His seemingly relaxed posture, and the expression of calm anticipation on his face, made him a picture of regality.

Adding to his already incredible reputation, the news article served to bring even more attention to Kirito as there was now a picture to associate the famed «Prince» with. The article seemed to be extremely detailed, going over most of the background information before covering the fight itself. It seemed that whoever wrote the article was from the front lines, as the information being spread was not something the public would know about.

"Seems like Kirito-kun is going to have some more fans..." Lisbeth sighed as she realized just how much attention the duel had brought them. Not just on Kirito and Asuna, as there was even a detailed article on the Royal Swords.

"Asuna-chan too." Silica pointed to a secondary article showcasing the popular vice-leader.

"Asuna «The Flash»..."

The aforementioned girl blushed brightly at the rather embarrassing moniker. "Oh no..."

Looking over the article that described her fight, she was dismayed to see that the writer seemed to be singing her praises. She wouldn't have minded, if not for the obvious hatred the writer seemed to have for her opponent.

The girl sighed and joined Lisbeth on the couch. "I have a feeling that the DDA aren't going to like this."

"Yea... Oh well, I don't think they liked us very much in the first place."

Silica hummed in agreement, joining the other two on the couch, her ever-present dragon curled contently in her arms.

"But did you have to destroy his sword?" Silica asked in amusement as Asuna reached out with a hesitant hand to pet Pina.

Asuna pouted as Pina opened its eyes and curled away from her touch. "I- I just want to touch you..."

"Well, it was the only way to win in that situation." Lisbeth chimed in. "I heard he had just upgraded his entire equipment set for that fight too."

"Really?" Silica blinked in surprise. "Isn't that really expensive?"

For the front-liners who tended to overlevel the current floor, it was understandable that most of the equipment discovered would be subpar compared to their level. The only way around this was to equip 'rare' armour that had bonus stats in order to make up for the difference in equipment levels. It was quite expensive, and not many besides the top guilds could afford it, and even then, only for a select few.

"Hmm, I heard they took quite a chunk out of their treasury." She recalled Argo dancing in glee as they had used her network to find the equipment upgrades. The service fee she had gotten in return was just salt on the wound to the defeated DDA members. "Something like an 'all-in' strategy."

"Hmph, even with all that, he wouldn't have been a match for Kirito-kun." Asuna added confidently, causing the girls to smile.

"Kirito-kun really is scary isn't he?"

The girls all nodded in unison.

"If he wasn't so lazy when off the battlefield..." Lisbeth muttered.

Any further gossiping was halted as a giggling figure suddenly burst into the room. Argo seemed to skip across the room in happiness, stopping in front of Silica.

"Eep!"

The smaller girl let out a squeak as she was picked up and swung around in a celebratory twirl, her dragon flying away in panic. Argo sat back down, taking over the previously occupied seat, and putting Silica onto her lap. The twin-tailed girl struggled feebly but could not escape as the older girl snuggled against her. Pina the pet dragon watched the proceedings with a confused expression.

"A-argo-chan, what are you doing!?" Silica protested as she was smothered by the sudden affection. "Ahn~ s-stop!"

Lisbeth and Asuna merely shared a look of amusement, each debating whether or not to lend a hand. It was best to leave Argo to her targets... lest you wanted to be dragged in.

"What are you so happy about Argo-chan?" Lisbeth had to ask.

Argo stopped harassing Silica to beam at the other two girls. "This!" Deftly manipulating her in-game menu, she materialized a **[Recording Crystal]** in her left hand. All of the girls stared at it with curiosity.

"What's on it?"

Before Argo could answer, the sound of rapid footsteps echoed from outside of the living room.

"ARGO!"

The angry shout attracted the attention of everyone in the room, and they turned to stare at the entrance. A certain messy haired player immediately burst into the room, skidding to a halt as he spied Argo sitting on the couch. His eyes immediately widened as he saw the crystal in her hands, while Argo let out a quiet 'uh-oh' as she was caught red handed.

"Hey!" Kirito lunged at the startled girl, causing her to jump away in panic, dragging the helpless Silica with her. "Stop- Moving!"

"H-hold on Ki-bou!" Argo ducked under each grab, using the smaller girl as a makeshift shield.

"Ah!" Poor Silica could do nothing.

"No! Gimme the crystal, now!" He lunged once more, causing Argo to let out a cry of alarm.

In reflex she pushed Silica forward.

"Iiiyaa~"

"Oof!"

The two fell backwards onto the wooden floor, with the twin-tailed girl lying on his chest with dizzy eyes.

"Ah, Silica-Chan! Kirito-Kun!"

Multiple voices of alarm shouted in concern.

Kirito just groaned while he sat up, rubbing his head lightly before he was reminded of the figure of Argo standing before him with a sorry expression.

"Argo!"

He leapt to his feet, taking care not to hurt Silica, and lunged once more.

"EEP!" The startled mouse squeaked, and immediately went for the safest position in the room.

"Eh?!" Asuna was bewildered as Argo hid safely behind her, peering slightly over Asuna's shoulder.

Kirito could only growl as he had to stop before he collided with Asuna.

"W-wait Ki-bou. Can't we talk about this?" Her regretful tone tinged with amusement did little to calm the male before them.

"No! Just hand it over!"

The other girls did not know what he was referring to but Argo seemed to smirk as she held up her left hand. Unclenching it, she revealed it to be the **[Recording Crystal]** from before.

"You mean this?" She waved the crystal around in the air. "I'm not sure If I want to do that~"

Her teasing tone caused Kirito to shake.

"K-kirito-Kun?" Asuna did not like where the situation was going.

"Guys?..."

Lisbeth's concern was unnoticed as Kirito finally made his move, leaping through the air in a tackle.

"EEP!~"

"AHH!"

The black-clad figure took down both of the girls in a rather impressive tackle. Falling through the air and collapsing in a heap of bodies. Recovering rather slowly, he quickly scanned his surroundings looking for the cursed crystal. The girls on either side of him were too shocked to say anything, but no doubt they would be in a fury soon enough.

"What's in this anyway?" Lisbeth idly picked up the crystal by her feet.

"WAIT!"

Ignoring Kirito's desperate plea, she activated the crystal.

"..."

Sighing resignedly, Kirito palmed his face with both hands.

The girls did not notice, as four sets of eyes focused on the image of a shirtless boy just getting out of the showers, if his wet body was any indication.

Pina looked around curiously as the humans seemingly stood still. "Kyuun?~"

* * *

"...I don't like this."

The boy's statement was ignored as the four girls around him continued walking. They made for a rather curious sight, a group of five cloaked figures moving in unison. Each of them wore a matching cloak of white, trimmed with gold, and the crowd had to wonder if they were in a guild. If only they knew who they truly were under the anonymity of their hoods.

"Really don't like this." He muttered.

"I thought we all agreed." Replied a female voice from his left, the tone rather melodic.

"Mmmhm, no going back now Kirito-kun."

"Stop whining Ki-bou."

He pouted as they teamed up against him, it truly wasn't fair that they were usually in sync with one another.

"Still..." He gave up as he was poked with a rather pointy elbow.

This plan of theirs... it simply wasn't something that he could agree with.

From the very first floor, up to now, they had been together. The girls refusing to let him do things solo, and vice-versa. They did not split up, it simply wasn't a possibility with them. There was no one else in this world that they trusted more.

With the unsettling mass PKing however...

Argo had come up with a rather basic plan. In order to lure the PKers out into the open, they would have to provide bait. The news that the clearers were offering to tag along with parties was something that had travelled fast, and many groups had taken advantage of it. With such a fact widely known, it was highly unlikely that the PKers would show themselves.

That was why they wanted to lure them out.

Any clearer that was seen accompanying a group would likely mark that group as 'untargetable' to the orange players. But if a group of seemingly low levels ventured out in a clear public setting, then it would be the perfect bait. Argo had long suspected that the PKers were using proxies; informants that marked their targets for them. A rather despicable act, but it was quite possible as the mass murders were the results of ambushes.

In «SAO», you could not enter any city while being marked as 'orange', as it would cause the impossibly strong guards to attack you. To still be able to gather information, they needed at least one 'clean' player inside of the city. It would also have to be someone unremarkable in order to blend in.

Kirito did not like this plan for several reasons. The most prominent reason being that they were going to be separated. With the trio of Lisbeth, Silica, and Asuna patrolling the popular hunting grounds for mid-levelers. Which left Kirito and Argo as the duo that would go undercover. He did not know how they were going to blend in given their rather astonishing popularity, but Argo had simply smirked and told him not to worry.

He was understandably worried.

That led him to the unsettling feeling he had ever since they had arrived on the 10th floor of Aincrad. The elven city of Ilsevele was a rather majestic place, being constructed with pristine white stone as the primary building block. Separated into multiple levels, the spiralling city of the elves had been a favourite of the players for a long time. It was here that the majority of the merchants had gathered, and even settled down.

This was where the majority of transactions were carried out, as the city on the top floor was usually reserved for the highest level of items. They had been here multiple times before, as the girls had fallen in love with the beautiful gardens, and the way the city had been built with nature in mind. Several large trees and plants could be seen with every step, and the sparking greenery seemed alive and in-tune with the city.

They were traversing the smooth, spotless steps up to the final level of the city, a place that was distinguished by the incredibly beautiful statue of an elven queen. Immediately, one could tell the difference in atmosphere when stepping onto the final echelon, as the buildings and general layout were much more elegant in comparison. Fully uniformed elven guards patrolled the area with stiff precision, and a myriad of players could be seen gathered around the Queen's Statue.

This was the most 'beautiful' place in Aincrad... or so that's what the players that gathered here liked to think.

The «Queen's Court» was an area that held the highest concentration of dressmakers, tailors, and designers. A rather popular area among the female players.

That wasn't why Kirito had a fear of this place, as he had been here multiple times with the girls, and the people were friendly enough. No, it was the fact that a rather notorious figure resided in this place...

The members of the Swords traversed a familiar route and stopped in front of a player-owned store.

«Ashley's Masterpieces»

A quaint looking wooden shop that was situated near the end of the city, right beside the stream of water that flowed in a controlled fashion down the city. The source of the stream could be seen from here, a large waterfall which powered a water-mill on its way down. All in all, the store and its surrounding area gave off a feeling of tranquillity.

Kirito gulped as Asuna knocked on the door.

There was the sound of moving feet, before the door was opened slowly. A mop of messy brown hair appeared, followed by glasses that framed widening eyes.

"Asuna-chan!" The girl quickly enveloped the other in a hug. She shortly noticed the other girls.

"Oh my, it's the Royal Swords!" Her cry brought several more figures to the door, and before Kirito knew it, there seemed to be a girly reunion.

Several hugs and happy shouts later, they were ushered in by the other girls and soon he found himself in the lobby of the place.

Glancing around warily, noting that the girls had all but forgotten his presence, he found that the place was impeccable as always.

The store seemed to be larger than it looked from the outside, and the lobby was rather sparse except for the few furniture placed near the back. Lining the walls were several mannequins showing off some fashionable designs that he knew would never work while in combat. He had to admire the craftsmanship of the clothing however, as he could tell they were incredibly detailed even with his non-existent fashion sense.

"Ara ara~ What do we have here..."

The soft sensual voice came directly behind him, and as Kirito very slowly turned around, he wondered how he had missed her presence.

He shivered as he took in the player, or rather, woman in front of him. Her voluptuous figure immediately stood out, framed by a sinfully black dress made out of glittery material. Meeting her smiling face, he gulped as he saw the familiar smooth red hair and ruby earrings of Aincrad's most talented designer.

"Well, if it isn't Kirito-kun!"

"Ashley-san... URK-"

Kirito was quickly embraced, arms waving in the air as his face was crushed against the dressmaker's sizable assets.

The older woman sighed as she hugged the boy tightly against her. "What have I said about being a stranger Kirito-Kun?"

"Mmmhpphm!"

"That's right dear." She smoothed his hair back affectionately before breaking off the hug. Kirito gasped as his lungs had precious air filling them once more. He did not know if it was possible to suffocate in SAO but he was in no hurry to find out.

"Now let's see..." She held him at arm's length, examining him with a critical eye that made the boy in front of her shiver. "As cute as ever." She hummed happily, smoothing out the crinkles in his current uniform. "Have you been eating well?"

He blushed lightly as the woman began patting down his body, effectively feeling him up. "A-ah, um, Yes Madam."

It was really hard to read the woman in front of him as she was overly affectionate in one moment, and the next she was busy mothering him. He did not protest her actions however, as he knew that she had his best interests at heart. She was probably the only other person in Aincrad that could still make him feel like a child. The other being Sasha.

"Good, I would hate to have to strap you down."

Kirito laughed nervously, as he knew she wasn't kidding. The last time they had met, she found out that he often skipped breakfast, and the next thing he knew he was being force fed by the overbearing woman. Of course, none of the girls raised a hand to help him, partially because they agreed with her, and mostly because she was incredibly scary.

The girls had finally noticed the presence of Ashley, and made their way over. The matron immediately spied a particular figure making her way slowly over, and she let go of Kirito. He let out a sigh of relief as the overbearing woman found a new target.

Silica didn't even have a chance to react before she was scooped up into a crushing hug, and was immediately subjected to some mothering.

"Fufu~ she hasn't changed at all." The group watched on in amusement as Silica took the mothering with a slight blush, taking it without complaint. "Sili-chan seems to like it."

The smaller girl was smiling as she answered Ashley's questions.

"You girls are next you know?"

The three girls shifted nervously at the statement, knowing there would be no escape.

Kirito smiled as he looked on fondly, but couldn't help but wonder. "Why are we here again?"

His question was directed to the girls, but it was Argo who smirked and answered. "To give you a make-over of course."

"...Right." His heart sank, as he was reminded of the promise he had made this morning. One irrefutable favour, in return for the destruction of that dreaded **[Recording Crystal]**. He sullenly resigned himself, surely it couldn't be that bad?

* * *

It was worse than bad. It was perhaps the worst thing to have happened to him in the 14 years he had been on this planet. The things... that had been done to him, Kirito did not know if he could go on.

"T-this..." His voice was in disbelief, as he stared into a mirror.

Ashley hummed as she examined him from all angles, a finger pressed to her chin in concentration. She reached a hand out to smooth an errant lock of hair before sighing in satisfaction.

"Perfect."

In SAO, the art of «Tailoring» and «Sewing» could be used to create user-made designs from scratch. To the skilled users of the craft, the designs were only limited by their imagination. And in the hands of Ashley, she could turn virtually anything that she pictured into reality. There were countless accessories, including wigs and dyes that could be used on hair. Make-up; a branch of the dye-making talent, could be synthesized much like the «Cooking Skill». All of these served as tools for Ashley to bring her creations to life.

Considered the best designer in Aincrad, Ashley was famous for her incredibly beautiful creations, and equally notorious for her very selective choice in clientele. She was someone that did not work just for Col or any other common exchange. She only chose to create something if the subject was interesting.

One such project was the uniform of the «Royal Swords», a task that she was quite interested in after having been approached by Argo. Upon receiving the request, her curiosity got the better of her, and she had requested a meeting with the entire guild. It was there that she had encountered what was likely the most interesting subject she had ever seen. An effeminate boy that she felt would be an excellent model for her, but that was not all. The way he held himself, was something that she had never seen before. An aura of confidence that was not faked in any way... and she had felt inspired.

Royalty. The theme of her creation, and she had spent weeks perfecting the design that would end up as the «Sword's» main uniform. Spending extra time on Kirito's uniform, she felt that she had captured the motif well enough. The material they had chosen was a rare leather from the «Berserk Wolf» mobs, and had taken considerable effort to gather. But the results had been worth it, and the black and white uniforms, trimmed with gold were seen as the staple of the «Swords».

She would have preferred to spend more time on the leader himself, as she found him to be a very interesting individual, and quite cute. He was simply too easy to tease, and she found comfort in his appeasing nature. He reminded her of her little brother.

"Well, what do you think?" It was no wonder then, that she had gladly taken the job of disguising her favourite subject, especially when she had heard Argo's idea.

It seemed her client was still speechless, mouth opening and closing in a state of shock. She giggled in amusement, walking around the boy to examine her work.

A rather brilliant job if she could say so herself. The 'boy' in front of her was no longer recognizable as the famed leader of the Swords. Instead, what sat in the chair before her was a rather pretty girl with long raven-haired tresses that fell down her back. Eyes widened in shock, and with the slightest hint of make-up, the girl would undoubtedly have been a first-class beauty to the rest of the population.

The true potential of Aincrad's skill system was nothing short of amazing.

Kirito did not think so. "I-is that me?"

Surely the girl in the mirror could not be the 'disguise' Argo had been talking about... yet the figure mimicked his actions perfectly, and with a sinking feeling in his gut, Kirito knew that he had been tricked. The 'irrefutable favour' that she had gotten from him this morning... there was no way out.

He hung his head dejectedly, he was trapped.

"Ara ara~ aren't you just adorable?" Ashley patted the sulking boy on the head. His pouting face was quite cute. "Now why don't we show everyone my masterpiece hmm?"

"Wait! No!"

His cry went unanswered as she unlocked the door to her workshop, and was unsurprised as several girls tumbled inside. They seemed to have been waiting against the door, if their sheepish expressions were any indication.

Then they all saw Kirito.

"Oh my..." Shocked expressions overcame them all, and Kirito shifted nervously. He did not like the starry-eyed looks.

"SO CUTE!~" A chorus of squeals and shouts echoed through the chamber, and before he knew it, he was mobbed.

His face remained sullen as he was poked and prodded, all of the girls in awe of the brand new person in front of them.

"Fufu~ I knew you were effeminate Kiri-bou, but this?" Argo smirked, stepping back as Kirito growled in answer.

"Uwahh~ Kirito-kun, you look so pretty!" Silica had a look of awe in her eyes, regarding the brother-figure turned the opposite gender.

Her words weren't unfounded as his rather regal looks were still obvious despite the make-up, and they could tell that 'he' would be a figure of grace.

Lisbeth and Asuna both had to fight the urge to tightly hug the 'girl' in front of them, as the pretty looks combined with the sulking face was simply too adorable.

"I won't forget this Argo." Kirito glared lightly at Argo, a light blush on his face. The situation was insanely embarrassing, and it took everything in his power not to run away

Argo simply laughed nervously, knowing that he was serious. Kirito rarely retaliated when she targeted him, but the few times he had...

"Alright ladies, enough fussing over Kiriko-chan." Ashley began to push the players out of the door. "Not you Argo-chan, It's your turn." She grabbed the suddenly shy mousy girl, and closed the door on the others.

"Don't call me that!" Kirito called out in vain as the door closed.

* * *

Something really didn't feel right to Kirito. It wasn't the fact that he was now a girl in physical appearances. No, he had to get over that fact fairly quick the moment the group had stepped out of the workshop. Judging by the amount of staring he had gotten, and resenting the fact that he wasn't allowed to use his cloak. He was supposed to be a low-levelled player that shouldn't have anything to hide after all.

Maybe it had something to do with the fact that Argo wasn't herself. A rather interesting way to say it would be that Argo had 'changed'.

The group all sneaked peeks at the brown-haired girl who skipped merrily in front of them. Dressed in similar low-level gear with Kirito, and face free of the usual whiskers, Argo was a brand new person. It wasn't just her appearance that had changed, as her rather mischievous personality had seemingly disappeared. The girl was now full of smiles and laughter, with no sign of her previous antics in sight.

It didn't seem right.

The girls, and Kirito, had always known that she was cute in her own right, but having her brown hair brushed smoothly back, and without the familiar whiskers, Argo could be considered one of the rare beauties of Aincrad.

He was jostled from his ponderings however, as the group reached the teleport gates. They would be splitting up from here.

"Be careful you two." Lisbeth regarded them worriedly, hands pressed to her side. "Don't be afraid to go all out if you have to."

They would be going undercover as low-levelled players after all, therefore their current equipment set was quite poor.

"Of course." He nodded, and turned to the rest of the girls.

"Be careful too... message us if anything happens." The girls all nodded in return. They had agreed to gather up if they ever encountered the PKers. There likely wouldn't be any trouble given their reputation, but it was better to be safe than sorry.

"Keep us updated Kirito-kun, Argo-chan."

"Of course." He answered, and Argo merely smiled. They both turned to the gates and shouted their destination.

"Anelia!"

The world rearranged itself in a flash of light, and the two found themselves in a brand new city. Immediately, he felt the change in environment, going from the lush forest scape of the elven city to a very quiet settlement.

«Anelia» was on the 14th floor of Aincrad, and a favourite among the mid-tiered players. This was definitely not due to the scenery, as even the main city was the same shade of brown as the rest of the floor. Uneven terrain, marked with swamps and bog lands, the floor had been an annoyance to clear. It was when they explored the floor however, that they discovered something astonishing about this particular floor.

The Dungeon Floor.

The unofficial name for the floor, and as the name would suggest, the entire floor was filled with dungeons. It seemed that almost every entrance, be it to a cave or an underground burrow, was a dungeon. Finding the boss dungeon was a rather insane chore, and took the front lines an extra week to find.

A positive to the seemingly endless amount of dungeons was that the floor had zero competition for training grounds. It would make no sense to fight over a dungeon spot when another one could be found just a minute or less away. Kirito remembered a funny scene of Klein being lifted up in the air by a giant earthworm in one of the larger dungeons.

Combined with the relative simplicity of the dungeon, having zero traps and only one mini-boss at the end, it was understandable why it was a favourite place to level.

"Are we early?" He asked the happy girl humming beside him, he was still a bit unnerved at the change of personality.

The brown haired girl looked up at him with a smile. "Nope~" She took the opportunity to hold his hands, and Kirito suddenly felt a chill run down his spine. "We're about 10 minutes away."

There was a sudden increase in stares, and Kirito looked down at their entwined hands. He knew what it must seem like to the spectators. Two rather pretty girls walking hand in hand.

He sighed as he saw several guys stare at them with large blushes. Of course Argo paid them no attention, busy humming and responding to some PM's.

"Alright." Kirito gave in first. "What's gotten into you Argo?"

"Ooh?" She tilted her head cutely to the side. "Dunno what you mean Kiriko-chan."

Shaking his head at the name, 'he' responded. "It's like you got a personality change along with the make-over."

"Really?" She batted long eyelashes at him. "How do you know this is not what I'm really like?"

She giggled at his look of disbelief, smoothing a stray lock of hair behind her ears. Kirito gaped at the sudden girly action. He couldn't believe it, but Argo seemed like a rather normal teenage girl at the moment.

"Hehe, I'm just really happy you know?" She gave his hands a squeeze. "It's not everyday that I get to go an adventure with Ki-bou."

"Hah... I guess." He didn't know why she seemed so carefree despite the nature of the 'adventure'.

They walked in companionable silence for awhile, their destination being near one of the city gates. Argo had stopped responding to PM's, simply content to skip lightly, the picture of innocence.

"By the way Ki-bou..." She stepped in front of him, giving a graceful twirl. "How do I look?"

Smooth brown haired locks, framing vibrant brown eyes and luscious ruby lips. Equipped with a standard chest-plate armour, and a flowing green skirt that showed off her shapely legs. Kirito regarded the girl in front of him with an appreciative eye.

"Cute." His immediate reply caused the girl to blush. He raised an eyebrow, as he had never seen Argo blush so innocently before.

"S-so bold... as expected of you Ki-bou."

She returned to his side, seemingly happier than ever, choosing to take his elbow this time. "Then, which is cuter? The Argo right now, or the usual Argo?"

He took a second to think on his answer. "The Argo that is happiest."

"..."

The girl seemed to freeze in his arms, and he looked down to see that her face was now a full shade of crimson. Idly scratching his cheek, he wondered if he had answered wrong.

"Really Kirito... do you even think before you say these things?"

Kirito looked at her in confusion, causing her to sigh. Snuggling deeper into his side, she tried to calm her rapidly beating heart. The smile of elation however, would not leave her face.

* * *

At the northern exit of «Anelia», a gathering of players could be seen loitering around the gates. A mismatched band of players at first glance, their discomfort was obvious. This was just a public group after all.

They had all gathered here, responding to a general summons, and as expected, the atmosphere was quite awkward. Public groups were rather hard to form nowadays, as the majority of the players had settled down with a group or a guild. There was still the odd request that showed up through the advertisement section of the newspapers however, and it wasn't that odd to see requests for a player or two to fill up an empty party.

A full public group on the other hand...

Besides the obvious nervous atmosphere and inevitable distrust, SAO was now a game where teamwork could be considered the priority. Therefore, to request a full group formation for dungeon clearing was certainly out of the ordinary.

As Kirito and Argo entered the area, they immediately attracted the attention of the players, all of them surprised. One pretty female player was hard enough to find, but two? It certainly was an oddity.

Kirito scanned the group with his eyes, nothing nothing out of the ordinary, but he did see there was at least three other female players. Absently letting Argo lead the way, he quickly tallied the numbers in his head.

11 players, plus the two of them, was a surprisingly large number. He could already tell that some of the players had arrived together, judging by guild icons and the way they had spread themselves.

Stopping somewhat near the other players, they waited for the 'leader' of the summons to step up.

He didn't have to wait for long as a red haired player stepped out from the crowd and turned to face them. There wasn't anything remarkable about the player that stood out, as he was dressed in leather armour that was fairly common, and wrapped with a green mantle. He coughed lightly to gather everyone's attention.

"Greetings everyone, my name is Hitsu, and I want to thank you all for answering the summons." His smile was friendly enough, and most of the crowd smiled in return. "I know the bad rep that public groups get, but I just want to start off by saying that your safety is the most important thing to me."

The player opened up his menu, seemingly manipulating his inventory. To the surprise of the crowd, several **[Teleport Crystals]** materialized in his hands. "First, teleport crystals, everyone who doesn't have one please come up and get one from me, and those that do, please have them ready on your person."

A small number of the players walked up and took one with a thankful expression. The crystals were rather expensive after all, and players often overlooked them in exchange for a new equipment upgrade.

Kirito frowned as he regarded the four crystals that were handed out, those must have cost a fortune for a mid-tiered player. Argo seemed to share the same thought as she narrowed her eyes at the player.

"Him?"

Argo shook her head. "He's clear, Lily checked him out this morning, there's only two others in this group that stand out."

Finding this particular gathering was credited to the twins, who had scoured the request sites in order to find one that seemed rather dangerous. A public group that was led by an unknown would be quite suspicious, but Hitsu was a player that was noted for being an information broker. It would explain why he had enough money for the crystals, leaving the question of why he wanted a clearing group up in the air.

"Alright, now that everyone has a crystal, let's get into groups." He walked into the crowd and started grouping people. Since many of the players had at least one other player that they knew, it wasn't hard for the groups to be formed. Within a few moments two parties had been formed, with the only people left out being Kirito and Argo.

The leader looked at them with an apologetic smile. "Ah, it seems we have a small problem..."

With 13 total players, there would be 1 odd person out, since each party could only fit 6 players. It wouldn't be that big of an issue, since in a Raid group, players received the same bonuses and experience as they would in a party. In SAO however, most people wanted to have the safety of working with other players. And if they could not see the HP bar, it would be hard to know when to assist.

"Shall we split into three groups?" He asked sheepishly. It was a fair suggestion, and most people would have accepted.

"Um, if it's fine with everyone, we will be fine in a group of two." Hitsu blinked his eyes in surprise, as did the rest of the crowd. Kirito hoped his voice didn't come off too 'boyish' as he tried to keep it soft and toneless.

"Are you sure?" He briefly examined the two girls in front of him, and concluded that they couldn't be any higher levelled than the rest.

"Yes, we're in a guild together so..." Kirito deeply hoped he bought the answer, as one of the main reasons why he wanted a group to themselves was to keep their real names secret. Although not many would know Kirito as the Prince, he was sure that everyone knew who Argo was.

"Hmm, alright if you're sure. Don't be afraid to ask for help okay?" He gave them a charming smile.

Argo simply smiled at her place by his side. "It's okay, this is already the safest place in Aincrad."

Kirito fought the urge to facepalm, and thankfully Hitsu only gave them a confused expression before dismissing it and turning back to the rest of the group.

"Alright, since everyone is ready, let's begin. Our destination will be the «Hollowed Tree» dungeon, near the end of the map." His announcement brought some nervousness from the group, as many of them recognized the location. It was considered to be the hardest dungeon type on the floor and was definitely not recommended for casual players.

"I know that some of you might have heard the rumours, of how it almost wiped out the last group that tried it. I just want to let you know that it's quite unfounded, as that group was confirmed to be a very small group of scouts." He was referring to the very agile and fast type of players that likely went ahead to map out the floor. Selling that mapping information was a pretty good source of income after all, especially if it was a dungeon map. "Besides, we have 13 players here, and a good amount of us are STR based."

The group looked around at each other, noting the many players that had a full set of plate armour. The only ones being without the heavy armour seemed to be the leader, Kirito, Argo, and the three other girls.

"As long as we have our** [Teleport Crystals] **ready, we shouldn't run into any problems. That said, the main reason why we are going there is because of the rumour of a secret herb located at the end of the dungeon." He smiled as some of the players looked intrigued. "Of course, if we find it, I'm willing to split the profits with all of you."

Kirito looked down at Argo, receiving a small nod in return. That particular rumour was spread a week ago, and the origin seemed to have come from an NPC. The specifics were blurry, but apparently the herb could be used to permanently raise a player's stat. If it proved to be true, than the profit would be extremely high.

Seeing the excited mutterings from the group, Hitsu smiled and beckoned them. "Alright, now come on, we should be able to clear out that dungeon before night time."

He led the way out of the city, with the rest of the group trailing him in two lines. It seemed that he was a fairly good leader, as everyone seemed to be chatting with one another, a huge contrast from the previously nervous atmosphere.

Argo silently sent him a PM.

«Argo: Rosalia, red haired girl to the right, Kuroda, black haired guy with the spear.»

Scanning his eyes discreetly over the walking players, he spotted the two immediately. The girl was rather easy to spot as she had a trio of guys talking animatedly with her, seemingly enraptured by her presence. Her bright red hair and form-fitting armour showed off her voluptuous figure. She was a player that was constantly responding to public groups, and was somewhat popular among the mid-levelled players. The only reason she was marked as suspicious by the twins was that she was in a guild, yet she has never been seen with any of the guild members.

Kuroda, the one with black hair was equally as easy to find since he had his spear strapped across his back. He was a rather intimidating figure that towered over the others, and had a dark red spear draped across his back. A solo player that was also seen among public groups quite often, the spear user rarely talked and despite many offers from others, he chose to remain alone. The only reason he participated in these parties was because of the sheer efficiency of the floor. He was marked down as suspicious simply because he stood out immensely.

These were the two players that were on the short list of suspicious players the twins had gathered overnight. Nothing was concrete, but any suspicious or odd rumour was taken into consideration and compiled. To see two of the players joining the same party was quite suspicious, as this group was clearly a perfect target for the mass murderers.

Kirito was snapped out of his thinking as two of the girls broke off from the line and fell in step with Argo and him.

"Hello!" A cheery voice greeted him, and he tried not to panic as the new girls inspected him up and down.

"Uwah~ You're both so pretty, why haven't I seen you before?"

Looking like a trapped deer, Kirito desperately thought of something to say.

"Hehe, thank you! We're both new to the area actually." Argo giggled and smiled back at the girls.

"You mean you've never been on the dungeon floor?" The girl with long black hair asked in shock. "But it's been cleared for so long!"

Seeing Kirito's blank stare, the shorter blue-haired girl suddenly blinked.

"Ah! Where are our manners!" The shorter girl suddenly bowed apologetically. "My name is Miharu, and this is Kumi."

The black haired girl also bowed apologetically, and Kirito raised his hands in protest.

"Oh its fine." Argo laughed them off. "I'm sure we make an odd sight, just the two of us. Well, my name is Tama, and this is Kiriko-chan."

"_Tama?" _He wondered why she had suddenly chosen that name, but put that to the back of his head as he gave them a small smile.

All of a sudden the mood shifted, and before he knew it, the three girls were laughing and interacting as if they were lifelong friends.

"_Scary..."_

"Anyways, we decided to finally give this floor a try after all of the exciting rumours."

"Ah, I see. Are you two in the same guild?" Miharu asked curiously. "Maybe I've heard of you guys before."

Argo laughed nervously, as revealing their guild name would be a definite 'game-over' for their disguises. "Ah, it's just a small guild for now, we're mostly on the 10th floor. Kiriko-chan and I are stronger than most of them so we decided to test out the dungeons first."

"Oooh~ That's so cool! I don't think I've ever heard of any girls leading a guild."

"Well..." Argo shifted her eyes mischievously. "Our guild leader is a guy."

Miharu and Kumi blinked, suddenly getting a glint in their eyes. "Wow, to have two pretty girls following him, he must be special."

"Is he cute?"

Kirito almost spluttered at the question from the blue haired girl.

"Very cute! I'd say he's the cutest in Aincrad." A shameless response.

"Really?! Wow, you must introduce us sometime, all of the-" Miharu suddenly looked at a coughing Kirito with worry. "Are you okay Kiriko-chan?"

"Y-yea..."

He glared lightly at Argo when the girls turned their attention back to the mousy girl. He received a smirk in response.

"How does he compare to The Prince?" Yumi asked shamelessly, feeling comfortable in the presence of the other girls. "I mean, have you seen the newspaper today?"

The two girls shared a squeal as they were reminded of the picture. "So cute!"

"Fufufu~ I'd say they are pretty even, I know what you girls mean though." Argo was now trying desperately not to collapse in laughter as she took in the blushing figure of Kirito. "Quite dreamy isn't he?"

"Right? Hah... I wish I was in his guild..." Miharu sighed longingly. "I heard all of the girls in his guild are part of his harem."

Kirito was suddenly overcome with a series of racking coughs.

"Kiriko-chan!" The girls were rather alarmed as the pretty girl desperately coughed for air, face turning a bright red.

They surrounded him worriedly, patting his back in a comforting manner.

"Are you sure you're okay Kiriko-chan? It's fine if you turn back you know."

"I-I'm fine..." He took in a gulp of fresh air. "Thank you..."

He was somewhat glad that it was Argo that was beside him at the moment, since he knew the other girls in his guild would be hard-pressed to keep up the disguise. Argo on the other hand, was content to carry on the rather embarrassing conversation.

"I know what you mean Miharu-chan, but I like my guild leader just fine." She smiled directly at him, causing him to look away with a light blush.

"Oh wow, that sounds quite serious." The girls regarded Argo with an appraising eye. "You have to give us specifics!

"Specifics? Uhm..." The brown-haired girl trailed off, suddenly shy.

"Come on, don't hold out on us, we're all girls here." They edged her on.

Kirito felt the sudden urge to turn back and make for the city.

"Well... he's constantly on my mind, even now. I don't think I can ever stop thinking about him." She looked up at the sky, deep in thought. "It's really unfair... Ever since the first time I saw him... I was captivated."

She met his eyes, and Kirito found that he couldn't speak. He had never encountered the emotion in her eyes before.

"There's no one else as strong, as brave, as _kind_... and I've never had a doubt in my mind, being by his side."

The girls including Kirito stared at Argo, not knowing what to say. Kirito himself was speechless, and he felt a surge of an unknown emotion rise up in him. The sheer emotion Argo had put into her words...

The other two girls were speechless for a moment, before they shared looks of awe. Walking closer to Argo, they clasped her shoulders in a friendly manner.

"We will support you all the way Tama-chan." Kumi was moved by the obvious love the brown-haired girl had shown.

"Right." Miharu nodded firmly. "It's quite obvious that you are deeply in love."

"L-love?" Argo suddenly squeaked out.

"Mmhmm." The blue haired girl suddenly stared sharply at Kirito. "And it seems that you have competition."

"Eh?!"

"I agree, Kiriko-chan has been blushing the whole time." Nodding sagely, the girls shared an excited look. "It's a love triangle!"

"What?!"

* * *

The beast before him screeched, a guttural sound that matched its rough appearance. It was mostly brown in colour, with a mismatched coat of dirty fur. The «Swamp Beast» was a typical mob on the Dungeon Floor, with the only real annoyance being that they tended to hide under the swamps. They were aggressive-type mobs, and were one of the few mobs outside of dungeons that actually ambushed players.

Kirito regarded the monster with a bored expression, unsheathing his sword with a practiced motion. The plain steel sword was a far cry from his usual sword - **[Dark Protector]**; a boss weapon that had dropped on the 19th floor. Instead, he had to use **[Steel Cutter]**; a rather typical long sword that could be bought in most merchant shops. It's effective item level was only 10, compared to his boss weapon which was probably equivalent to level 30 after all of the upgrades.

It wouldn't have mattered.

The monster leapt towards him with a roar, but Kirito waited until the beast was moments from colliding with him before he attacked.

A swift «Slant», one of the most basic sword skills was executed perfectly, carving a red line diagonally across the Swamp Beast's rectangular face. The beast flinched, the strike doing bonus damage as it cleaved through its right eye. Before the monster could even scream in pain, Kirito's sword was again in motion. «Vertical Arc» activating without delay, carving a 'V' into the beast's chest. A final thrust was delivered, as «Linear» was activated, causing the monster to explode into countless polygons.

All of this occurred before most of the group had even registered the presence of the «Swamp Beast».

"...Wow."

Miharu and Kumi immediately started clapping as they took in what they just saw. That was beyond what a normal player could do, as the sword skills were directed in such a precise manner that it seemed like only a single attack was used.

"You weren't kidding when you said Kiriko-chan was strong."

An understatement, as the group continued to stare at Kirito. He rubbed the back of his head nervously, regretting how fast he had taken care of the beast. It seemed that handicapping his sword was ineffective as he had instinctively sought out the weak points anyway.

Seeing Argo giving him a deadpanned stare he chuckled sheepishly. Thankfully the group couldn't inquire further as the other «Swamp Beast» mobs joined the ambush. Hastily spreading apart, Hitsu showed his leadership skills by immediately assigning three to a mob.

The girls who had been walking with them the whole time suddenly pulled out their weapons, both of them using a sword and shield. They quickly joined Argo who was defending against one with a similar sword and shield combo. She couldn't use her favoured claws while disguised after all.

He noted that Argo had no trouble with the sword and shield, seemingly able to retain an aggressive technique. Her usual fighting style was almost completely offense, and she seemed to disregard her shield completely.

Seeing that they were having minimal problems with their mob, he focused his attention on another approaching «Swamp Beast». This time choosing to take his time, Kirito chose a more defensive fighting style, opening in with thrusts while dancing away from any retaliatory attacks. Normally he wouldn't play around with a mob, but for the sake of his disguise, he figured he could afford it.

As the poor beast howled in pain and finally shattered, Kirito turned back to the girls who had finally finished with their own. Noting that everyone had fought back the ambush with little trouble, he fell back into step.

"Good job everyone!" Their leader called out. "I don't think any of us took a direct hit, pretty impressive if you ask me!"

There was a feeling of camaraderie in the air, and they all smiled at one another. It was always a good sign when your teamwork was steady.

"Anyways, let's move on, it shouldn't be that much further."

Once again the group proceeded to move in two lines, with the girls falling into step with him.

"How are you so strong Kiriko-chan?" Kumi looked at him appraisingly. "You took down that «Swamp Beast» in a few seconds!"

"Uhm, critical hits I think?" He tried to play it off innocently.

"No way! It looked like one sword skill, but I've never seen one with that many hits."

He supposed he could explain that it was the mechanics of the low-levelled sword skills that allowed him to chain them so successfully. But then the fluidity and grace in which he executed it would not be something just anyone could replicate. He doubted anyone besides Asuna would have been able to recreate the motions correctly.

Luckily, Argo came to his rescue. "Fufufu~ It's okay girls, Kiriko-chan has been receiving some private lessons from our leader himself."

Kirito stared at her with an open mouth. Argo smirked.

"Oooh!"

Kirito sighed as the two girls began their second interrogation of the day.

* * *

Near the very edge of the Dungeon Floor was a series of extremely large hollowed trees that were spread apart quite evenly. At the base of each tree, was a carved entrance that was the entrance to a mid-levelled dungeon. Having been only scouted once, the dungeons were quite new, though many doubted that there would be anything out of the ordinary. Since this was SAO however, not many would risk the chances of a trap when the rest of the dungeons were all relatively safer in comparison.

The group approached the entrance warily, having gotten used to the rapid ambushes from the mobs of this floor. There seemed to be an abnormal amount of monsters on the way, most likely due to the lack of other players travelling this far out.

"Alright! We're finally here." Hitsu gave them all a big grin. "Hopefully it turns out to be worth it in the end."

Being an uncleared dungeon type, they had no idea what was in stock, and Kirito desperately wanted to chide them on their naivety. The potential reward was simply not worth the risk, and even if most of the players were at least 10 levels higher than this floor, there was still the potential of falling into a deadly trap. The game didn't care if it was a death game after all.

"Right, I guess I'll lead the way? You ladies can stay in the back." He smiled at them before leading the way in.

Everyone chuckled nervously, following his lead momentarily after. The men headed in first, leaving the five girls in the party to follow. Rosalia, the red-haired girl that had remained aloof the whole time gave the four girls a brief glance before walking away confidently.

Miharu and Kumi gave them a nervous smile before hurrying after their groupmates. Leaving Argo and Kirito as the last ones before the entrance.

"Kirito?" Her voice was serious, and he grimaced. It seemed that Argo had also sensed the odd feeling that seemed to permeate the area. As if they were being watched.

"Go ahead." He told her, and with a nod she began to send out a series of PMs.

Kirito scanned the surroundings with a keen eye but could not find anything out of the ordinary. The area around them was quite flat, which meant that any watchers would be hard-pressed to find a good hiding spot. Yet, he could not throw off the feeling that someone was staring at him.

He sighed as there was nothing he could do, the group was in too deep and he had no way of bringing up his suspicions without proof. Noticing that Argo was done, they quickly fell into step and caught up to the group.

Immediately, the confining feeling of a narrow hallway could be felt, and the nature of the dungeon was surely 'decay'. The rotting floor and walls made for a rather gruesome sight, and the group had huddled closer together as they progressed. Luckily, there seemed to be a myriad of odd bugs that glowed in the dark, providing much needed lighting. Even then, the atmosphere was gloomy and foreboding.

"EEP!"

Hearing a scream from beside him, Kirito immediately readied himself... only to falter as he saw what Argo had screamed at. It was a rather large cockroach and as he scanned the creature he found that it was a «Neutral Mob», meaning it was largely harmless, unless someone attacked it of course.

Chuckling as the infamous information dealer was reduced to a shivering girl, he pushed the creature away with his foot, causing it to scuttle away rapidly. Seeing the odd looks from the rest of the party, he sheepishly gestured to Argo. They laughed slightly in return, serving to lift the previously uncomfortable mood.

"Relax Ar- Tama." Even though he tried to comfort her, he filed the information safely away for later use. Finding one of Argo's very few secrets was likely worth a fortune... or at least a couple of relaxing weeks.

The group continued onwards, although Argo decided to stick closer to him, not that he minded. The narrow setup of the dungeon seemed to be unwinding, as the walls were growing larger apart. They were probably nearing the centre of the tree, which was unusual considering how little resistance they had encountered.

As if answering his musings, the Dungeon finally threw a mob in their way. Seemingly melting off the walls and forming into vaguely humanoid forms, were apparently the Dungeon's protectors. Scanning the newly formed mobs with a trained eye, he found nothing out of the ordinary save for the high defensive stat, judging by its bulky figure.

Since there were only two of the large monsters, the group split evenly in half, each tackling their own guardian.

Kirito watched as one of the heavily armoured players reached the mob first, lashing out with a red sword skill. The large mob remained unfazed, and sent the player reeling with a heavy fist. It didn't seem to have any other special abilities, and the rest of the players surrounded the humanoid mob with a fury. There was little the guardian could do as it succumbed to the numerous blows.

He frowned as the mob fell over, but did not immediately disperse into polygons. It shouldn't have come as a surprise to him, as he had been in multiple dungeons before. The mobs usually had some sort of special ability or feature to make them stand out from normal mobs.

It seemed that the «Rotting Guardian» mob was capable of splitting into miniature versions of itself, as the rotting creature suddenly exploded. In its previous spot were two more, smaller versions of itself, and Kirito regarded them with amusement. The only danger seemed to be when they exploded.

"Back off when they fall!"

With a renewed effort, the group leapt back into the fray, and soon there were explosions happening all over the place. Luckily they had much more room to manoeuvre than before, and nobody bumped into each other.

The creatures proved to be quite tedious, as they continued to split into two smaller versions each time it was cut. This resulted in a rather annoying situation as the group had to deal with tiny versions of the original that could only leap around as its basic attack. It dealt little damage but was an annoyance as they constantly moved in and out of range.

Kirito sighed as the group was assaulted by what seemed to be an army of tiny figurines. He deftly slashed his sword through the air and was rewarded with a small explosion. Repeating the motion anytime the small mobs targeted him, the area around him quickly became a flurry of sword strikes and small explosions. Argo who had been hiding behind the whole time, smirked as she saw the chaos that had descended on the group.

"Go Ki-bou!" She whispered, causing him to smile.

It was a short while after that the entire area was cleared, giving the tired group a moment of reprieve.

"Hah...thank god that's over." The other two girls sighed in exhaustion, each had been running around the whole time. They glared lightly at Argo who had giggled from her position beside Kirito.

"Amazing as always Kiriko-chan." Kumi gave him a thumbs up.

The leader of the group laughed sheepishly. "Heh, that was quite unexpected."

The entire group was rather exhausted thanks to the constant movement they had to do.

"Shall we move on?" Hitsu got up slowly, gesturing for the group to follow. He had to stop as someone's spear tip was pressed directly under his chin. "Wha-"

"Don't move."

Everyone followed the spear to find a rather surprising sight. The red haired girl that had been chatting happily with the guys the whole time now had a sinister smirk on her face. Several members of the group looked at her in shock.

"Rosalia! What are you doing?!" The cry came from one of the male players that had been in her party.

She looked at him with a sneer. "Shut up."

Kirito shared a look with Argo, both of them deciding to see where this played out. Surely the girl in front of them had something else in mind, as there was no way she could take them all on. They didn't have to wait long.

There was a small commotion as several players gasped, seeing the myriad of new players stepping into the scene. What was most obvious about the new arrivals were the cursors hanging above their heads.

They were orange.

Each of the new arrivals had sinister grins on their faces as they readied their weapons. Kirito quickly counted seven or eight players, and frowned. It seemed that their bait had worked, but he could not help but feel that something was missing. Scanning the players in front of him, he immediately knew that they could not have been the ones watching him, none of them looked subtle whatsoever.

"I've been waiting for this all day." Rosalia laughed. "Making a public group in the middle of all this PKing nonsense? How stupid is that!"

The group tensed, none of them knowing what to say.

"Then... those were all your doing?" One of the males asked her in horror, causing the others to gasp.

"Of course." She sneered in his direction. "After all, you're just a bunch of weaklings. We're doing a favour by taking you out of this game."

One of the players immediately grasped his teleport crystal.

"Hey!" The orange player, one who wielded a large axe suddenly shouted. "Don't even think about it!"

Immediately the orange players flooded in, each of them pressing their weapons against a member of the group. Kirito grimaced as a spear was shoved against his face, belonging to a grinning male. Argo huddled closer against him seemingly in fear, but he could tell that she was ready to go at a moments notice.

"The moment one of you activates a crystal, the rest of you are dead!" Rosalia shouted.

The player grimaced before reluctantly dropping the crystal on the ground. Even if some of them could escape, there would undoubtedly be a slaughter.

"...What do you want?" Hitsu asked her, he seemed rather emotionless despite the spear pressed to his neck.

"Heh, we have plenty of time to decide, but first of all..." The red haired girl scanned the crowd, eyes landing on Kirito. "You."

Kirito blinked as everyone turned their attention to him. "Y-yes?"

He tried to give a meek impression, deciding to keep up the disguise. There was no reason to break out into conflict just yet.

It seemed to work as she sneered at him. "Keep an eye on her boys, she's the strongest here."

Immediately, two more of the orange players surrounded her, one armed with a dagger, and another with... dual axes? Kirito stared at the chubby looking player with a raised eyebrow, almost breaking out of character.

"Don't do anything stupid." The chubby player growled at him, causing Argo to sputter in laughter. Luckily from the others' vantage point, it looked like she was sobbing into his shoulders. Kirito tried desperately to keep a straight face.

"Take off all of your equipment."

Her command was immediately met with protest as everyone seemed to grow angry at her cruelty.

"Hey!"

"Kiriko-chan!"

He inwardly grimaced at the smirking redhead. Having a 'girl' strip all of her equipment would be rather cruel. It seemed that she was trying to lower the morale of the group by humiliating their strongest player. A sound strategy considering that the public group outnumbered the orange players. In a PVP situation however, he doubted that their group could come out on top. There was more to facing off against players than numbers after all.

Scanning the assembled crowd, he sighed reluctantly, before opening up his game menu.

"Wait." The voice of Hitsu rang through the area, causing him to halt.

They all turned to stare at him, especially Rosalia who growled in response. "Don't be stupid."

He merely chuckled in return. "I think you have bigger problems to worry about."

Before the angry girl could pierce him with her spear, there was the sudden echoing of laughter, bouncing off the dungeon walls. They all felt a chill run down their spine at the sheer happiness in that laughter.

"Who's there! Show yourself!"

The laughter suddenly cut off, and the soft pitter patter of footsteps soon sounded throughout the hall. A short moment later, several figures cloaked in black arrived in the same fashion the orange players had.

"Who the hell are you?!" Rosalia shouted angrily. Everyone stared at the newcomers with hope and fear, each wondering which side the new arrivals were on.

There was only about half a dozen of the cloaked figures, but as Kirito scanned them, he felt his heart drop as all of their cursors were orange. The situation was quickly getting out of hand. It seemed that getting all of the players out of this unscathed was likely impossible. Even with Argo's help, he doubted they could fend off this many players. Not without a few innocent casualties along the way.

The apparent leader of the cloaked figure chuckled, a horrible raspy sound that echoed eerily in the hall. "It seems that we have some imposters in our midst."

His cloaked companions laughed alongside him, causing the orange players to bristle in anger.

"What the hell are you saying bastard!" One of the orange players sneered and walked up to him recklessly. "Stay out of this, or you'll be next."

There was a few moments of silence as the cloaked figure stared at the player before him. Then he burst into laughter once more. The insane cackling resounded off the walls, and everyone recognised the source of the laughter from before.

"Bastard!" The player slashed out with a blue sword skill.

The cloaked figure never stopped cackling, even as he ducked under the swing. The player grew more frustrated with each missed strike, and the crowd watched with a sense of anticipation.

All of a sudden the laughter stopped and in the blink of an eye, the cloaked figure closed the distance between him and his attacker.

"Die."

The orange player stumbled back in shock, looking down at the knife handle protruding from his stomach. It was black in colour, and seemed to radiate a bloodthirsty aura. He grasped at the weapon, trying to pull it free from his chest. It wouldn't budge, not due to a unique effect, but because he found that he no longer had control of his arms.

"W-wha-"

He was silenced as another dagger found its place in his neck. Falling over, he twitched slightly before dispersing into a scattering of light.

Several screams sounded through the hall.

"Kozu!"

"He killed him!"

Low, ominous laughter was their reply, as the rest of the cloaked figures joined their leader in a symphony of mocking laughter.

Kirito found the entire scene disturbing and he readied himself subtly, placing himself directly in between Argo and the collection of orange players.

The orange players that had been holding the others hostage converged near the centre, meeting the cloaked figures in anger. Their apparent leader, Rosalia, was staring wide-eyed at the entire scene.

Kirito gestured for the other players to gather around him, and they obeyed slowly, none of them wanting to draw the attention of the conflicting PKers.

"Well?" The murderer asked mockingly. "Aren't you going to avenge him?"

That seemed to be the catalyst needed, as the opposing players roared in anger, each of them seeking revenge for their fallen guild-mate.

Dancing around the incoming weapon strikes with an incredible display of agility, the cloaked leader escaped the onslaught unscathed. Moving past the last attacker, he dashed out of range, and made his way towards Rosalia.

None of the orange players could respond however, as the cloaked figures finally decided to enter the fray. The 'war' between the PKers had begun, and none of the onlookers could do anything but watch.

"Ki-bou..." He glanced at a worried Argo, reassuring her with a nod.

"Everyone, teleport crystals at the ready, use it all together." His tone bore no room for arguments, and they found themselves wanting to obey almost immediately.

"What about you guys? And Hitsu!" The rest of the group nodded fiercely.

"We can fight too!"

Kirito sighed as he took in their brave expressions. They didn't want to back away and leave the three of them behind. This was probably the only moment where he would have preferred a cowardly group.

"Very well, stay with Argo." His statement was met by several confused expressions.

"Who's Argo?"

He didn't spare them a glance as the battle was drawing to an end, with the victors already decided. Swiftly manipulating his inventory, he quickly stashed away all of his 'disguise' equipment, and began equipping his proper armour and weapons.

The group looked at him in shock as the previously beautiful 'Kiriko-chan' turned into a rather effeminate looking boy in clearly high-leveled gear.

"W-wait, you're..."

He didn't stop to hear whoever was speaking as he quickly dashed towards where Rosalia and the leader of the cloaked PKers were dueling. Though it looked like a fight, Kirito could tell that Rosalia was just being played with. Numerous slashes from the dagger were stopped just before they connected, and Rosalia was clearly on the defensive, her face a picture of fear.

Just as Rosalia was about to be stabbed, Kirito slipped in between the two players, blocking the dagger with the side of his sword.

"Oh?" There was a strange sort of amusement in the dagger-user's voice. "What do we have here..."

Kirito did not stop to converse, and immediately flowed into a flurry of sword strikes. A far cry from the his previous opponent, the dagger-user found himself being pressed back as the speed and range of the sword prevented him from doing anything. Expertly wielding his longsword, Kirito forced him on the defensive, and as soon as the dagger-user flinched, he executed a sword skill «Linear», which sent a blue coloured stab that broke the cloaked figures dagger and stabbed him neatly in the chest.

"Huhu... As expected of you Kirito-kun."

Narrowing his eyes, Kirito made to continue his onslaught when there was a sudden commotion from the rest of the group.

"Stop right now!" A familiar melodic shout echoed through the chamber, and Kirito felt relief rush through him.

Backup had arrived.

Running into the hall area was a large assortment of players, each of them looking fully ready to take on the rest of the room. Equipped with enough armour and weapons to distinguish themselves from the regular players, it was obvious that these players were very high levelled.

The ones leading the charge were girls, each of them rather famous.

"Drop your weapons." Asuna glared fiercely at each of the orange players, and most of them obeyed, seeing the futility of continuing against such overwhelming odds.

"So... the «Royal Swords» in person."

They all turned to see the cloaked leader chuckle lightly, seemingly uncaring of the situation. Kirito narrowed his eyes, and readied himself for the slightest hint of aggression. This opponent was rather skilled, and he felt that the dagger-user was holding back significantly.

"I'm... honoured."

Asuna glared at him unflinchingly. "Shut up. Drop your weapons and surrender, you're surrounded."

Looking around, there were at least two dozen clearers that had arrived, and he recognised several players in the crowd. Against this many clearers, the PKers stood absolutely no chance.

To their surprise, the dagger-user simply smirked, and before anyone could react, he threw something down to the ground. Simultaneous blasts sounded through the area as his cloaked teammates followed his lead. The high level smoke bomb smothered the room in dark smoke.

"Damnit!"

Kirito fumbled around in the smoke, trying to grasp onto the PKer, but to no avail. He could not see anything in the dense smoke.

There was a sudden scream, and he turned around, waving his hands desperately, trying to clear the smoke faster.

"Sayonara, Prince." The whisper came from beside him, and Kirito immediately lashed out with his sword.

But it only cut through empty air.

Inwardly cursing, he tried to search in vain for a sign of the elusive dagger-user. A few moments later the smoke cleared up enough that he could see what had happened.

The leader of the cloaked figures was gone.

Gritting his teeth, he noticed that the rest of the cloaked figures had also escaped, leaving only Rosalia's group behind.

The sound of polygons dispersing echoed through the hall, causing him to spin around in shock. On the ground, where he had previously seen the fallen orange players, was a single black dagger. Immediately turning to look at the other surrendered players, he noticed that each of them had a black dagger thrust into their person.

"The daggers!" He shouted, and several of the players reacted, pulling them out of the nearest player.

"P-please!" A sudden shout came from behind him, and he realised that Rosalia had been there all along. Rushing towards her side, he quickly grabbed the dagger thrust into her chest and pulled it out. Eyeing the weapon with distaste, he quickly noted the purple looking liquid that seemed to be dripping from the tip.

Poison. And a very high levelled one.

Quickly manipulating his inventory, he materialized several expensive healing potions, and began to feed them to the fading girl. She sipped at them desperately, and did not stop until she consumed all three.

"Why! W-why isn't it working!" She seemed to be staring at her health bar in a state of shock.

Kirito felt helpless, there was no reason why the potions shouldn't work, as they were the most expensive ones you could buy on the current floor. A sudden revelation came to mind, and he was reminded of a hidden branch of the «Poison Making Skill». Much like how most things in SAO could be customized, so could poisons. By mixing and matching various components together, one could make completely new types of poisons that were not available from the normal crafting system.

A poison that completely prevented healing... he suddenly shuddered.

Rosalia gripped at his shirt desperately. "Please, help me! PLEASE!"

He opened his mouth to say something... anything.

Her eyes widened, and she was gone...dispersed into a thousand different particles, never to be seen again.

* * *

"Are you alright Kirito-kun?"

He sat by the teleport gate in deep thought, after the events in the dungeon had past, the clearers had escorted the rest of them back to the main city. Along the way, they had chastised the group for falling into such a risky situation and many of them were extremely thankful towards the clearers.

Looking up at Asuna, who was looking at him with concern, he gave her a small smile.

"I'm fine. Just thinking."

After everything had been sorted out, it was revealed that only Rosalia's dagger had the purple poison on it, and the rest of her guild members were safe after being fed a healing potion. They would be sent to the Army's jail shortly after, escorted by a few clearers each.

It was afterwards, that Rosalia's guild members had confessed that they were in no way related to the previous PKings, as they were primarily a guild that stole or intimidated others for items. They had never even PKed someone before, only needing a couple of hits to get what they wanted.

That did not gain them any pity... yet Kirito could not help but think about Rosalia. The way she had died was inhumane, and in those last moments, he could see the deep regret in her eyes.

What a pointless way to die.

If those weren't enough to cause him a headache, then the debacle that was 'Hitsu', was surely enough. As it turned out, their 'Hitsu' had been a fake, with the real one discovered in the merchant district shortly after. When he had questioned the parties, they had revealed that they each had thought the leader to be in the other group. In reality, he hadn't been in either of the 5-man parties.

He had escaped along with the cloaked PKers.

What a troublesome situation.

Kirito sighed deeply, before standing up abruptly. "Let's go home Asuna."

"Okay." She beamed at him, falling into step as he walked towards where Argo was chatting with the rest of the girls, including the two they had met earlier today.

"By the way... what's this I hear about a cross-dressing leader?"

He palmed his face.

* * *

**A/N: Another chapter released.**

**Again, a big thank you to everyone who has reviewed so far, I do read every single one.**

**As for why this chapter took longer than usual? Well I'd say school if I wasn't such a procrastinator. Mostly it was because this chapter was almost purely interactions, which are always hard to write smoothly. It did turn out to be around 12.5k words, and I think I covered what I had pictured in mind. The ending scenes were a bit rushed, though I don't think I could have made them longer anyhow. **

**About this chapter****: "dat Argo." and various interactions with the girls and the rest of the SAO world. The PKing focus just worked its way in there somehow, and I hope the new take on Rosalia was interesting. I found it cool to see the relationship between two PKing guilds, although I did make Titan's Hand kind of pathetic in this story. Mostly because I found them really ridiculous in the anime, the kind that wouldn't have the guts to actually kill. Faced off with a real predator like the Laughing Coffins, they are truly the sheep in this scenario. I would also like to remind everyone that there are no 'red cursors', only orange. As the term 'red guild' is just something the SAO players made up to describe the PKing guilds.**

**A huge thank you to n0mster for beta'ing this chapter for me. I can already tell the difference, since I usually skip over my own mistakes often. I really should revise my earlier chapters sometime. But then again, this is mostly a learning experience for me, as my first real attempt at a story. **

**Shoutouts****: To Fool's Journey (Pointed out some mistakes, and for being a boss.), and to the rest of the SAO Chat (You know who you are =]) for nagging me.**

**I'd like to refer everyone once again to my SAO forum, since there are some awesome ideas in the works. (Catsy's new story, and Whiz's Saber!Kirito vs Archer oneshot as examples.) So pay a visit sometime, give all of the authors some feedback. **

**Also stay tuned for my Sinon/Kirito AU oneshot. (It's in the works.)**

**Thank you for reading!**

**Next Chapter: ? (Undecided as of yet.)**


	7. Chapter 7 In Motion

The monstrous beast before him roared in defiance as it took in the enemies that dared venture into its chambers. It had the body of a dragon, armoured with silver scales that seemed to glisten despite the low lighting in the cave. It was equipped with a pair of vicious-looking claws that were probably bigger than his entire body, and a large, spiky tail that swung aggressively behind the creature. Perhaps the most startling thing about the large boss however, had to be the three heads that roared and snapped in unison, each firing off their own blasts of fire in anger.

A particularly brutal boss fight seemed to be in order, and Kirito sighed.

"Relax."

His voice resounded loudly through the chamber, and the large group of players behind him snapped out of their shock.

"Stick to the plan, on my mark." He looked around briefly for the affirmative nods before turning back to the girls beside him. "You girls ready?"

They nodded in return, and Kirito readied himself. The boss remained in its position, seemingly content to observe them. Three heads roared in unison, the sound nearly deafening in the confined space.

Kirito took that as his signal, and charged forward, leading the way for the offensive. His girls immediately followed, with the remaining clearers trailing a bit further back. The first strike would set the pace for the rest of the battle, and they had planned it several days in advance. It was thanks to the meticulous efforts of the scouting party that they had a good idea of what the boss was capable of.

Few plans worked perfectly in action however, and Kirito hoped that there would be no surprises from this boss. The disaster on the 25th floor still served as a silent reminder of just how badly a boss battle could go.

"Silica!"

He slowed down just a bit as they neared the boss, letting the smallest member of his group take the lead. The girl gave a shout of affirmation before setting up, stopping within lunging distance of the giant boss.

The short girl crouched slightly, her body parallel to the group. She raised her white buckler in the air, creating a platform that she held firmly with both hands. "Ready!"

Kirito leapt onto the shield, and the smaller girl let out a sound of exertion as she put her abundant STR stat to use. Giving him a boost along with his innate jumping ability, Kirito easily reached the near-limit of the dungeon ceiling before dropping down. The jump was calculated however, and the trajectory allowed him to meet the centre dragon head-on. He let out a shout before executing a familiar sword skill. His sword glowing a brilliant blue before landing squarely between the dragon's eyes. «Amplifying Strike» worked to weaken a small area considerably, but its conditions were tougher to meet on a boss. The area of effect was incredibly small, and whoever followed up would have to have incredible accuracy.

Ignoring the cry of pain from the boss, Kirito used the dragon's chest as leverage to push off, landing steadily on his feet. Just as he hit the ground, he looked up to see the figures of his group members already in the air, ready to follow up on his initiative.

Asuna arrived first, using the same method as Kirito, and readied her rapier.. She would only have one shot at this, and had to make it count. Eyeing the small red wound on the dragon left by Kirito's sword skill, she narrowed her eyes, and concentrated.

"_Now!"_

Using her most accurate sword skill, a simple stab called «Linear Pierce» that had a very high critical hit chance, she struck out deftly, causing the dragon to immediately flinch back in pain. Her thrust had been perfect and the bonus damage caused by both of their sword skills caused the middle head to scrunch up in pain.

She would have been worried as the other two draconic heads turned towards her, if not for her teammates. With mouths full of fire, and a furious glint of anger in their eyes, the two heads reared back to roast her.

"Hya!"

Lisbeth interrupted the right head with a well-timed «Impact» skill, the overhead strike causing the dragon to flinch and briefly become stunned.

At the same time, the left dragon head was met by Argo, who garnered its attention using several thrown needles, before reaching the angry head. As she came within range, her claws glowed a dark red in preparation for her strongest sword skill. Her weapons were not meant for interrupting bosses, and she would have to trigger a large amount of burst damage for it to happen.

She smirked as she activated her newly unlocked «Sinister Spectrum» skill, the 11-hit combo leaving bright red scars as she slashed through the dragon's eyes multiple times. Landing lightly on her feet, she assumed her move was enough to trigger a flinch as she did not see a large streak of fire.

In the span of a few tense seconds, they had successfully led the charge, blocking the initial flames which the three-headed dragon would have undoubtedly released. They had no time to congratulate each other however, as the rest of the clearers caught up. Each of them roaring with vigor, inspired by the brilliant opening they had witnessed.

The 34th boss battle had begun.

* * *

"Hah... t-that took... much longer than I expected." Silica commented between gasps, she had played a very active part in the battle after all. She received several nods of agreement from the rest of her party, each of them looking rather tired.

The group took a very well-deserved moment of rest as they observed the rest of the players. All of the clearers seemed to be hustling around the DDA members, as one of them had apparently gotten the «Last Hit». There was a general celebratory mood as everyone smiled and cheered one another. Another successful clear without a single casualty.

The three-headed dragon proved to be rather straightforward, discounting the fact that they had to interrupt the heads each time one prepared itself for a flame breath. What took the raid group so long had to be the absence of any notable weak spot, as its entire body was covered in silver, armoured scales. With most of the heavy hitters saving their cooldowns for interruption purposes, the brunt of the damage had to come from the more tanky players, as they suddenly found themselves not as useful. Heathcliff himself took care of the only other danger; the spiky-balled tail that tried to bash them every now and then.

Eyeing the celebration as one of the DDA members materialized the drop, a rather elaborate helmet made from the same material as the silver scales, Kirito found himself smiling. It had taken them a long time, and despite the numerous setbacks, the frontlines were now much more unified than ever.

Laughing slightly as Argo drooled slightly over the helmet, Kirito gestured for the girls' attention. They followed him as he led the way to the staircase that would lead them to the next floor. It had been a tradition of theirs; being the first ones into the battle, they would be the first ones to leave.

Opening the elaborate looking double-doors, Kirito sighed in relief as the next floor revealed itself. Long endless plains of grass were a welcome sight after the immense rocky terrain that had made up the 34th floor. He vowed never to take flat ground for granted again after his experiences on that floor, as even the main city had been slightly slanted.

Looking back at the girls, he smiled as they seemed to share his sentiments of relief, Lisbeth even collapsed happily on the grass. Silica joined her on the ground, followed by the rest of the girls. The weather was rather nice on the floor, with a warm, gentle breeze that seemed to caress the landscape.

He was tempted to fall asleep as he sat down beside the girls, but he knew that showing off his laziness this early on the floor was a sure way of angering the girls. They had all been rather busy these few weeks after all, putting their all into clearing the floors. He felt bad for arranging very little break time, as he knew the girls never complained in order to keep up with him.

Scratching a happily purring Pina in his lap, Kirito let out a sigh of contentment as he took in the gentle atmosphere. Sitting around on the grass, talking about anything that came to mind, was a reminder to him of what awaited them outside of this death game, and he wondered if he could talk to them like this... on the other side.

"Hey." He called out to them, his tone suddenly wistful. "Lets go home."

* * *

On the 22nd floor, near the very edge of the habitable area was an abandoned farm lot. The large plot of land was in a secluded area, away from the main road. Although many players had chanced upon the land, it went unmentioned due to the fact that there was nothing notable. For those with the proper information however, the abandoned lot was an amazing opportunity.

In SAO, the ability to purchase permanent housing was a highly appealing feature. Especially since the players were now trapped in a death game, having a place to call home had been the goal of a good majority of the players. It was quite expensive however, and only the richest players could afford them, and even then, they often had to split the cost with another player.

Several other factors came into play when considering buying a home in Aincrad. The location played a large part, as the area determined what the home would look like. Homes in the larger cities were much more expensive than buying a house in a village, and a 'unique' house was worth much more than a generic model in a district. The system seemed smart enough to estimate the worth of a lot, as the buildings on the busy 10th floor had seen a sharp price increase.

Along with the price factor, you had two choices when considering a home. The first one was to purchase a generic building, one that was either made for merchants or for living and sleeping. These buildings were plentiful and the most affordable. The other, much more expensive option, was to purchase a plot of land. After buying the land, you had the ability to 'construct' a building on your plot. It was not 'true' construction so much as selecting and modifying several variables before having the game's system randomize the building. The second option was largely reserved for the richest merchants, and for large guilds who wanted a headquarters.

For the regular players who would have to already save up a considerable amount just to buy a mediocre house in a district, the idea of buying a customized building was unlikely. For the top guilds however, the only limitation was being able to buy enough land for their needs. The major cities rarely had any land to sell, and it was rare to be able to have a custom headquarters in a city. It was speculated that the higher leveled floors would have more land available, as more and more featured were unlocked.

The abandoned farm lot on the 22nd floor was unique in this case, as it was relatively close to a teleport gate, and thus the main city, while still maintaining its unique seclusion. To be able to purchase the land however, one had to go through the tedious motions of completing every single quest on the 22nd floor. Luckily for a certain guild, having the top information broker in the game made that requirement rather trivial.

Buying the land was a group decision, as the costs would set them back tremendously. However, the thought of having a home to call their own was highly appealing to the girls, as they were sick of constantly renting places. It would finally allow them to finally have their own rooms, and most of all, a place to call home.

The incredible cost of the land was covered largely by Argo, who had somehow amassed so much money, that she had started running out of places to invest in. Even then, it took nearly their entire savings to purchase the land and construct the building. The final result was undoubtedly worth it in the end.

Situated before a large lake, the grand cottage seemed to blend in with the scenery. It was three stories tall and had two balconies, along with a deck that overlooked the lake. The previous farmland had been also transformed, replaced by what seemed to be a myriad of different flowers that decorated the plot of land.

If someone were to take the main road from the 22nd floor, they would be surprised to see a new addition to the path. A spiralling road led the player to a gated entrance, decorated with a guild emblem. The insignia consisted of three swords, a golden one in the middle, bounded by a black and white blade on its left and right respectively. The Royal Sword's emblem was now rather famous, and luckily for them, the location of their home had remained secret so far.

It was here that the most famous party in Aincrad lived.

* * *

A sharp thrust to the left was blocked swiftly, her opponent's translucent blue blade parrying the attack rather easily. She had to sidestep the retaliatory swing from his other blade; a black steel longsword. Using the momentum, she twirled around him, aiming a thrust to his neck.

The sound of steel meeting steel resounded loudly throughout the area, as he blocked her thrust without even turning his body.

"Not fast enough Asuna."

His chiding tone made her huff, and she renewed her onslaught. Her black-haired opponent seemed to grin before adjusting his posture. His black blade met her rapier, knocking the thrust upwards, before he swung with his left handed weapon. She had to abandon her attack to leap backwards in order to dodge the horizontal swing.

She frowned as she slowly circled around him. His stance was relaxed, but she knew from experience that he was using it to catch her off guard. He had been on the defensive since the start of the battle, and it was annoying her to no end. Every single attack of hers, no matter how fast was blocked, and even if she followed up with more thrusts, he easily kept up with his two swords.

She growled lightly. "You're not fair Kirito-kun!"

"Oh?" He raised a single eyebrow. "How so?"

"You... you don't have a weak point!" She shouted at him. "Shouldn't you be weaker on the left side at least?!"

Asuna had been attacking him from all angles since the start of the battle, but no matter which direction she chose, her attacks bounced off the same way. She would have thought that his left side would be slightly weaker, since it was his seemingly non-dominant hand. Her theory was proven wrong, as he showed the same speed with either hand.

"Uhm...probably." He admitted sheepishly.

She sighed in frustration at his reply, shaking her head at him. He refrained from smiling as he took in her pout. She was pretty cute when angry.

"Let's switch it up, we're about to hit the time limit anyway." He said before lunging.

"Ah!"

An upward slash from his right hand, followed by a downward slash from his left. Asuna parried the first blow, but was caught by the second blade, which left a streak of red along her arm. Hastily backing off, she had to dodge and parry several more strikes that followed. "W-wait Kirito-kun!"

He laughed as he continued his onslaught. "Come on Asuna, only four minutes left!"

To the side, watching the two players spar with one another, were three other girls and a small dragon. They sat around a table, observing the two swordsmen. One of them sighed.

"They really are lost in their own world." Lisbeth said, getting noises of agreement from the other two girls. The three watched them enviously for a moment, as Asuna dodged deftly around his two swords. Though they were fighting, both of them had large smiles on their faces as they danced around another.

"Hua~... I'm jealous." Argo mumbled. Kirito and Asuna always had amazing chemistry together, especially in battles. Their sword styles complemented each other, and as such, they knew how to read the other. Compared to someone like her, whose style was quite unorthodox, the two of them seemed to be a perfect pair.

"It is pretty amazing though." Silica added, her eyes sparkling as she took in the elaborate dance. Her two 'idols' were always amazing to see in action. "They're both so fast."

A whirlwind of stabs from Asuna was deflected rapidly by Kirito's two swords. All the while, they continued to circle around each other.

"Mmhmm, it's very rare to see Kirito-kun duel-wielding now. I think he was embarrassed after the duel with Heathcliff-san." Lisbeth noted. "Speaking of which, I wonder how he does it..."

"Dual-wielding?" Argo asked.

"Yea, I didn't think it was possible in real life- well, you know what I mean."

Argo nodded before sinking deep in thought. "I agree. If I didn't know any better, I would say that Ki-bou has some hidden unique skill. But the way he moves is just too natural for a system ability." She regarded the smiling black-haired boy with an appraising eye. "He must have learned it somewhere before SAO... or maybe he's just that good." She added with a smile.

"Is it really that hard?" Silica asked curiously. Although Kirito made it seem easy and graceful, it wasn't like his one-handed fighting style was that much less impressive.

Argo scoffed. "If I didn't see it with my own two eyes, I wouldn't believe it."

"I don't think I would ever be able to use a sword with my left hand." Lisbeth added, it would just be too awkward and cumbersome for her. "And not to mention using sword skills..."

They all turned to see Kirito move back onto the offensive, attacking from wide angles that left Asuna staggering after each blow. The way he was moving left no indication that he favoured a hand. Both of his swords moved at the same pace, and sometimes at the same time.

"Yep, and Ki-bou can activate his sword skills freely from each hand." Argo said with a shrug. She had seen him switch sword hands often, even in the middle of a battle. It was almost ridiculous how easy he made it seem.

The idea of dual-wielding had always been extremely appealing to the beta testers; the majority of which came from MMO backgrounds. It was fairly common to duel-wield in standard RPGs and MMOs after all. When the players tried to utilize it in SAO, they realized just how realistic the game was. With the awkward motions and inability to use sword skills, the appeal of dual-wielding dropped rapidly.

They all turned their attention back to the two duelers when Asuna let out a girlish scream. The nimble girl had dropped her rapier in shock as Kirito dashed past her guard, and now had a sword pressed to her neck, held in a reverse grip. Her shocked expression shortly turned into a pout as she realized her loss. They watched on as she turned around, pushing Kirito onto his back petulantly.

"Those two..." Argo muttered, watching as Kirito laughed while Asuna scolded him for being so rough.

Lisbeth and Silica blinked as Argo made her way over to the two laughing players. They smiled as Argo pounced onto Kirito yelling something about 'her turn'.

Just another typical day.

* * *

"Kirito-sama!"

As soon as he stepped into inside, a voice shouted in surprise. The speaker was a black-haired girl around his age. She bowed slightly as he turned his gaze towards her, and he pointedly overlooked her state of dress. He didn't know how Argo convinced the two girls that were staying with them to wear a maid uniform of all things, but he wasn't going to question it. That road always led to more trouble than it was worth.

"Yes, Lily?" He said with a smile. She looked rather cute in his opinion, with her hair accesory and petite figure.

The girl looked up briefly, meeting his eyes for the briefest of moments before looking away again. "Uhm... there's someone at the door looking for you."

He frowned as he considered who could be looking for him, at his door no less. This home of theirs was fairly private after all, and very few knew of where it was located. Before he could open his mouth and ask her who it was, several figures tumbled in through the opened patio door.

"Ah!" One of the girls stopped hastily in surprise, almost bumping into Kirito. "What's the matter Kirito-kun? Why are you just standing there?"

Kirito moved further into the room, making room for the rest of the girls to come inside.

"Lily-chan?" Asuna called out in slight surprise. "Is something wrong?"

The two girls that had moved in with them were still extremely shy, especially in the presence of Kirito. To help them adjust to living with them, the girls allowed them their own space. The two of them had finally started settling down, even joining them at meals.

"Asuna-sama, Uhm..." She looked helplessly in his direction.

"Mm, seems like we have a visitor." He explained to the girls. They all blinked, none of them could think of a reason for a visitor. "I'll go see who it is."

He made his way to the main door, unsurprised when the girls all decided to follow him. He ran his mind through all of the possible suspects, before coming to one. He shook his head with a sigh as he neared the door. It seemed his guess was correct, as he gazed upon a familiar blue-haired clearer.

"Diabel." He greeted. Rosy, who was guarding the door valiantly, gave him a look of relief as she stepped back.

"Kirito-san." He greeted back with a nod. Any further words were stopped as he took note of the procession behind him. "...and girls."

Each one of the renowned girls of Aincrad gave him a stern glare in return. They never really forgave him for his stunt back on the first floor, although any real anger no longer existed. It had been something that had turned into a habit however, and Diabel couldn't really blame them. He really wished that they would stop with the glaring though, as the one coming from Silica looked decidedly out of place.

"What's he doing here Kirito-kun." Lisbeth asked with a frown. Her dislike for the guy aside, Diabel was a fairly important person on the front lines. His presence here was probably not because of a social call, despite Kirito having a tentative friendship with the vice leader.

It was Diabel who answered. "I have a bit of information for Kirito-san."

"I see..." If it was what he thought it was then it couldn't wait. Kirito gave the girls an apologetic expression as he beckoned the blue-haired player in. "It won't be long."

The girls did not like the fact that he was holding something from them, but understood. At Asuna's prodding, they moved towards their initial destination; the living room.

"Don't be late for lunch!" Asuna told him over her shoulder.

He gestured for Diabel to follow him before making his way over to one of the many available rooms. He was thankful that the cottage was quite spacious as the conversation he was about to have wasn't something the girls needed to know about.

He led Diabel into a spacious room, with a large glass window. The rooms had all been self-decorated so far, but still retained the theme of quiet elegance. Underneath the large window, there was a small round table with two chairs. Kirito gestured Diabel to take a seat before taking the opposite chair.

"Quite a place you have here." Diabel stated with an impressed voice.

"Cost quite a fortune." He replied.

"I'll bet."

There was a moment of awkward silence as Diabel seemed to struggle with himself. Kirito contented himself with staring outside of the window. Whatever the vice-leader was here for seemed important enough to wait.

"You were right." Diabel said after a few minutes. "I should have listened."

Kirito said nothing, merely sighing in return. "I see..."

There was only one thing that Diabel could be referring to.

"Anyone hurt?" He asked, after a few moments of consideration.

"No, the ambush failed. They didn't consider how many of us were there, and ran away as soon as we appeared."

"And the informant?"

The silence was all Kirito needed to confirm his suspicions.

A few weeks ago, someone interesting had apparently contacted Diabel. The contact had used a third party to relay a message to the vice-leader. The message was short and simple, but the content was staggering. It promised information on the notorious members of the Laughing Coffin guild.

Laughing Coffin. The pking guild that was responsible for all the previous murders, finally had a name to go along with their dark emblem. Even though their activities had almost halted altogether, the fear that the red guild seemed to cause had increased with the discovery of their name. It was probably their method of revealing the name that had caused more fear amongst the players: A single player had suffered as his team were tortured in front of him, only living long enough to bring the message to the clearers, before leaping off the edge of the world in his grief and despair.

The mysterious informant had promised a time and location to meet. Of course, Diabel had found the entire situation to be quite suspicious. Surprisingly, the first person he contacted had been Kirito himself. It was a situation that Kirito would have liked to avoid, but given the current circumstances, it wasn't something they could afford to overlook. Any information on the red guild was crucial.

His initial advice was for Diabel to gather a group of trustworthy players - including Kirito himself - in secret, before meeting the informant with the relative safety of numbers. Even if it was a trap, the sheer numbers and levels should be enough to drive away any ambush. Plus, the meeting area was relatively safe, being just at the edge of town. This was mostly to protect Diabel, since he doubted the 'informant' was being truthful.

Diabel had been ready to follow his advice, but decided to inform the leaders of the front lines first. Heathcliff had been accepting of the plan, and so were the DDA leaders, and they each assigned some members to go with Diabel. That had been the initial meeting. When he met with the hooded figure, he had been ready for anything. All the players accompanying him had been ready to spring into action at a moment's notice.

They needn't have worried. The informant was truthful to his word, and spoke with Diabel in hushed tones and a shrouded face. Through the brief conversation, he had already gained considerable knowledge on the red guild. Namely, information about their leader, and how their organization was structured. It was a shock to learn just how organized the red guild was, and how much sway the leader seemed to have. The informant spoke with a shaky tone, and hastily bid Diabel good-bye as soon as he finished.

"It's all my fault... I should've done more." Diabel mumbled sadly. He recalled the scared eyes of the informant, the player had been so nervous and twitchy. When he had looked into his face, he was shocked to find that the player was incredibly young, being 12 at best.

"It's not entirely your fault." Kirito said sadly, closing his eyes in thought. Even though the informant had revealed everything to the best of his knowledge, many of the players had thought that he could be of further use. "Sending him back in wasn't worth it."

After the initial meeting, and the wealth of information that had been revealed, most of the clearers had been excited. They now knew how many pkers there were, and roughly how they worked. They knew their leaders, and how much their hierarchy affected them. With this much information, most of them believed that they could be easily dealt with.

They needed one last piece of information however, and that was the location of their headquarters. The informant was a 'green', meaning he was not part of the main group that committed the murders. Instead, he was a simple information gatherer that marked potential targets and brought information about the clearers to the leaders. It was agreed, despite some minor protests, that the informant should find the location of their base.

The first sign that something had gone wrong was when the informant didn't contact Diabel for a week. The second sign was the informant sending a PM that requested a meeting in a remote location, alone. Afterwards, Diabel's friends list along with the crossed out name on the monument stone, confirmed their fears. He had been executed.

There was a soft knock from the doorway of the room before a figure entered, carrying a serving tray. She apologized for the disturbance before coming over to their table and putting the tray down. Kirito smiled slightly at the blue-haired girl as she laid out the tea set with surprising grace. Diabel himself looked at him with a raised eyebrow, silently asking for an explanation. Kirito simply grinned wryly, he had long since gotten used to their antics.

"Thank you, Rosy." He said to the maid girl. She blushed lightly before bowing, looking like the perfect picture of a servant.

"Kirito-sama." She said softly before leaving the room.

He sipped nonchalantly at his tea, pointedly ignoring Diabel's wide-eyed stare. "Drink. It's really good."

"You guys really take this 'prince' thing seriously don't you?" Diabel asked with amusement, raising the teacup to his lips. Taking a sip, he was surprised at how good it tasted.

"Urk... don't remind me." Kirito shook his head wryly. "I've long since given up on trying to stop them."

It wasn't that he disliked having the two maids attending to him, it was just that he was a bit unnerved at their enthusiasm. The two girls tended to place him on a very high pedestal, and he found himself trying to meet their image of him almost subconsciously. It didn't help that Argo approved of their behaviour wholeheartedly, saying that he needed more 'womanly touches' in his life. He had no idea what that meant.

He nibbled on a piece of biscuit, observing the blue-haired player out of the corner of his eye. He seemed more relaxed than earlier, but he could still see the effects that the entire situation had on him. Despite the limitations of the game, the signs of stress and lack of sleep were present on the vice-leader's face. Kirito hadn't noticed it before, but the way Diabel seemed to move indicated an extreme lack of sleep. Most likely the guilt was pressing down on him.

"Diabel." His voice startled the blue-haired player, causing him to almost drop his cup. "He knew what he was going to do. What he was risking."

Diabel knew that of course, he had been the one to ask the informant if he was willing to help after all. He even tried to dissuade him at first, noting the immense danger he would be placing himself in. But the boy seemed resolute, citing the amount of atrocities that he had helped commit as a perfect reason to help. He still felt that he sent him to his death.

"He was just a kid, Kirito." Diabel stated tonelessly.

To that, Kirito had no comment. There really was no way of justifying the boy's death. He had gotten mixed up with the wrong people. Murderers who had no remorse, and no qualms about killing one of their own.

"By the way..." He began slowly. "Who knew of his identity from our side?"

Diabel furrowed his brows in thought. "Well, most of the KoB would know... and some from the DDA." Although none of them knew the informant's ingame name, they had been there when he had first confronted him.

"Do you know them all?" Kirito asked suddenly. "Or rather, do you trust them all?"

"Of course!" He frowned. "We've fought on the front lines with all of them."

Kirito did not respond, merely taking a sip from his cup. The insinuation had been planted however, and Diabel found himself growing restless.

"What are you trying to say, Kirito?"

"Isn't it obvious?" He met the accusing stare with his own impassive gaze. "You know what I'm talking about."

It was something that had been on his mind lately; the integrity of the clearers. He knew that many of them were loyal to some extent, or else they would never risk their lives for the cause. But given the size and scope of the clearers, it was hard to keep track of everyone. He thought it would be quite easy to sneak someone into the DDA or even the KoB given the right circumstances.

"But that's..." Diabel trailed off, lost in thought. He was someone that prided himself on being a capable leader. It was the reason why he was considered the most approachable clearer. But even given his open personality, he could not say that he knew everybody on the front lines- or even in his guild.

"It would make sense." Kirito noted solemnly. "None of our undercover efforts have yielded anything, and don't you find it odd that they seem to pick up in activity every time we are busy?"

It was true that the murders happened most frequently during the time the clearers were either all involved in clearing the front lines, or preoccupied with a strategy meeting. The notorious pkers seemed to maneuver around them at every turn.

"I... I have to talk to Leader-sama about this." Diabel got up stiffly from his seat. The possibility of having a traitor amongst them gave him a sickening feeling.

Kirito got up at the same time. "I'll walk you out."

The mood had suddenly turned sombre between them and Kirito couldn't help but sigh. He hated being the bearer of bad news, but it had to be said. The movements of the Laughing Coffin members could no longer be just a coincidence. It was obvious that there was at least one traitor amongst the clearers. The question as to who, and how many; wasn't an easy mystery to unearth.

He opened the door for Diabel silently. The blue-haired player gave him a nod of respect as he made his way out into the afternoon sun. "Diabel."

The vice-leader turned around with a questioning expression.

"His name... what was his name?"

He looked at him with surprise in his eyes before answering.

"Sora."

* * *

The hustle and bustle of the afternoon crowd was a common sight on the 30th floor of Aincrad. The somewhat recently cleared floor had a main city that was quite large in size, favouring an industrial design. Being primarily built from a unique type of brick, the structures of the city seemed to give off a red glow in the afternoon sun. A myriad of building sizes seemed to sprawl from the centre of the city; where the teleport gate was located.

Two figures phased into existence at the feet of the teleport gate. The stragglers that hung around the gate looked on in curiosity. One of the players had shockingly pink hair that fell down to her neck, and was dressed in a rather eye-catching uniform. Black and white were the primary colours of the uniform, and although it clashed heavily with her hair colour, the player seemed to fit perfectly into the ensemble. This player was known to several of the onlookers, and if they did not know her personally, they recognized her uniform and guild emblem.

The other player was someone that almost every one of the players knew. She had light auburn hair that fell down to her neck in a similar fashion to the girl beside her. Dressed in a similar uniform, save for the lack of a skirt, and a pair of shorts in its stead. She had a mantle that wrapped around her snuggly, and as she scanned her surroundings with a trained eye, most of the players averted their eyes. The whiskers that adorned her face was an obvious indicator of her identity, and the way she smirked at most of them was a clear sign of who she was.

Lisbeth, and Argo of the Royal Swords. Immediately whispers broke out from the small crowd of onlookers.

"The usual huh?" Lisbeth muttered with a sigh. Beside her, Argo lightly grinned before patting her back.

"It's not so bad Lis-chan."

She winked at several of the onlookers and grinned when they looked away with a blush, even some of the girls. Argo had long since gotten used to the stares that accompanied them.

Before she could reply, two more figures materialized into existence behind them. The light revealed the two figures to be two smaller girls. It was obvious that the two players were related to each other by their likeness. They were dressed in the same uniform as Lisbeth, although trimmed with a soft blue instead of the royal gold. Adorned with a flowery hair accessory each, they made for quite an adorable sight.

"Ready girls?" Argo smiled as the two girls gave a short bow before falling into step slightly behind them.

Together, the foursome moved past the crowd easily, as everyone parted ways for them. Sometimes it was easier to use their reputation to their advantage, especially in this case. Moving onward from the teleport gate, the streets were packed considerably with players of all levels. This was what happened when a new city was discovered to be a hotspot for merchantry.

Their uniforms contrasted greatly with the surroundings, and numerous whispers seemed to follow them as they passed. Ever since the duel and the articles that had been published, their notoriety had reached its peak. If there was such a thing as celebrities in Aincrad, then the Royal Swords were the ones to fit that role. It helped that there were now numerous photos and descriptions to associate the names with.

"So, how was Kirito-kun?" Lisbeth glanced back curiously at the two girls slightly behind her.

The two 'maids' shared a brief look before replying. "Kirito-sama seemed relaxed..."

"But?" She pressed.

"Diabel-san was rather upset." Rosy finished hesitantly.

Lisbeth sighed, shaking her head. "That can't be good."

"Mmm, probably not." Argo agreed from her left. She knew exactly what role Diabel played on the front lines, and anything he had to consult Kirito with, was not something to be taken lightly. "In fact, I have a good idea as to what they were most likely talking about."

"Really?"

"It's related to the information meeting from two weeks ago."

"Laughing Coffin?" Lisbeth almost shouted in alarm. Seeing the troubled stares from the onlookers, she toned her voice down. "You mean... the informant?" She asked in a hushed whisper.

Argo nodded. "Diabel was his contact." Even she had scoffed at the blue-haired player when he had revealed the source of his information. Being the premier source of knowledge in Aincrad, it was understandable that she was hesitant in accepting the new information at face value. But the information had been correct, having been verified by herself personally. "Judging by Diabel's presence, the _mission_ failed."

She said the word bitterly. The whole idea had been a disaster in the making in her eyes. She was someone who dealt with information gathering everyday, and even she would never go so far as to risk a life. It was never worth it, and guessing by Diabel's visit today, she was proven right. It left an unsettling feeling in her stomach.

Lisbeth looked down sadly, silently reprimanding herself for being one of the supporters of the mission. She had been one of the many that had pushed for more from the informant, justifying the risk as reasonable. It had been easy to forget that the regretful pker was just another human being who wanted redemption.

"Everything is so bleak these days..."

It seemed like every week heralded the start of a new scare for the trapped players. Whether it was the ever-present fear of Laughing Coffin, or the increase in violence from a scattering of different orange players. There was even a recent article that revealed a sinister case of sleep pking; the poor victim was dragged out of her bed into the outskirts of town. An unnatural state of fear had enveloped Aincrad.

Argo clasped her shoulders. "Cheer up Lis-chan, it'll get better." She smiled at her, and Lisbeth nodded lightly in return. "And besides, we always have each other."

Lisbeth had to smile at her words. It was true that nothing seemed to bother her when she was in the presence of her friends. Their cottage by the lake was a haven, almost untouched by the harsh realities of SAO. Sometimes it was like the game faded away, and they were free, leaving only a happy care-free life by the lake.

"We're also here, partially to address that." Argo lazily pulled up her game menu, sending off some replies in a flurry.

"I wonder about that." Lisbeth looked at the mousy girl beside her. "How many do you think will show up?"

Argo smirked. "You have no faith Lis-chan~"

"Well, I mean it's such short notice." Lisbeth huffed in return, crossing her arms. "And besides, I'm sure all of the eligible players are in guilds already."

As they passed the many vendors on the street, and onto the outer district of the city, Lisbeth noticed the steady decline of players. It seemed that the majority of the players hung out in the crowded merchant districts instead of the outer rim. It was understandable as the only structures on the outer edge were mainly houses.

"Oh? Wanna bet Lis-chan?"

Lisbeth was in the middle of opening her mouth for a confirmation before they stepped out from the urban sprawl and onto the very edge of the city. The city was not walled, and instead had an encircling canal. The very edge of the city, where the canal met the brick roads, was quite spacious.

It was absolutely packed with players. As far as she could scan with her eyes, there was a seemingly endless array of players. Male and female, short and tall, with varying levels and equipment to match. They seemed to be chatting animatedly amongst each other, and a sense of excitement lingered in the air.

Argo looked at her with a knowing grin, and Lisbeth could do nothing but gape at the sheer concentration of players. "They...they're not all here for us are they?" She asked in disbelief.

Argo's reply was lost in the sudden increase in noise from the crowd. They turned to see every player switch their attention to the foursome that had appeared. Excited murmuring and expectant looks seemed to circulate. Lisbeth had a sudden bad feeling about why Argo had specifically asked for her assistance today.

Looking down at the smaller girl, she sighed as she took in her pleading expression. The foxy girl had a quivering lip and watery eyes. If she didn't know the girl so well, she would have squealed and promptly hugged her. There didn't seem to be any other way to dissolve the situation, as the crowd continued to pick up in noise.

She manipulated her game menu slowly, opening her inventory to equip her ever-reliable mace. The players who could see her action seemed confused, and looked on with shock as she raised the large weapon over her head.

-CRACK-

"QUIET!"

Absolute silence. The immense blow caused by her sword skill caused every player to jump up in fright, and her harsh voice served to even silence the startled yelps. She scanned the suddenly silent crowd with an appraising eye. Nodding slowly as all of the players cowered at her stare, she turned expectantly to Argo.

Argo looked back with wide-eyes, not expecting the sheer efficiency of the girl beside her. "R-right."

Turning towards the waiting crowd, she cleared her throat before shouting. "Welcome to the Royal Swords recruitment event!"

* * *

He walked into the lounge tiredly, the conversation having taken its toll from him. With all of the troubling events lately. he found it harder than ever to relax. With increasing violence and hate, despite the approaching winter season. He had thought that they were long past something as petty and mindless as this.

"Kirito-kun?"

He turned his head slightly to see the figure of Asuna, dressed in her casual outfit and equipped with a white apron. He gave her a tired smile as she stepped out from the kitchen and into the lounge.

She seemed to sense his fatigue, and didn't comment as he sat down heavily on the couch. She moved behind him on the couch so that she could lean over him. "Didn't go so well?"

"No..." Kirito muttered. He couldn't say he was looking forward to whatever came from the investigation that Diabel would no doubt carry out.

He was surprised when she draped her arms around him in a comforting manner, and leaned into her soft touch almost subconsciously. Her arms wrapped around his neck, and she leaned her head down so that she could whisper into his ear. "It'll be okay Kirito-kun."

He had to smile as she tried to comfort him. It wasn't like he actually needed any comforting, but he couldn't complain. Sighing in contentment as she ran her hands through his hair, he wondered why Asuna was acting this way today. It was true that she was much more affectionate in the privacy of their home, but the way she was acting right now was quite unusual.

"Are you hungry?" She asked softly.

He nodded in reply, noting that it was far past the time for lunch. "I missed lunch." He stated with a sudden realization. "Sorry Asuna."

"It's alright Kirito-kun." She patted his head as she stood back up. "I'll bring you something right now."

He watched her walk away with an affectionate smile. He wondered what he would do without the mothering the girls tended to subject him to. Probably starving somewhere in the snow at this moment, grinding away with no end in sight.

It was a short while later that Asuna walked back in with a tray in her hands. His stomach grumbled as he spotted the pair of gourmet sandwiches on the plate. Eyes sparkling, he thanked her wholeheartedly as she set the food down in front of him.

Taking a bite of the delicious sandwich, he almost moaned aloud at the exquisite taste. It seemed that Asuna had leveled up her cooking once again overnight, as the flavours had changed slightly.

"Uwah... so good." He took another bite before staring at Asuna seriously. "Asuna, you're amazing." He praised fervently.

The girl blushed prettily before sitting down beside him. "Mou, Kirito-kun, you always say that." Although she tried to brush him off, she loved the feeling of contentment that his praises always seemed to bring. She watched him eat with a happy smile on her face.

"By the way Asuna." He said between bites. "Where are the rest of the girls?"

"Silica-chan is upstairs, changing, and um..." She thought for a moment. "Argo took Lisbeth and the twins somewhere for business... or that's what she told us." She told him with a small frown. The way Argo had smirked while dragging away the reluctant Lisbeth didn't really sit well with her.

"Huh... interesting." He was too tired to think on why Argo had taken Lisbeth with her, but he knew it would only lead to more headaches.

He finished his meal with a satisfied sigh, leaning back to stretch widely. "That was great Asuna." He complimented the girl next to him.

She merely smiled as she took care of the plate. He would have offered to clean up after himself, but the girl would have none of that. Sometimes, he thought that she took the unofficial role of housewife too seriously, or maybe Argo's teasing had finally corrupted her.

A cute yawn echoed softly through the lounge, and Kirito craned his neck to see the small figure of his youngest party member. Silica looked around before meeting his eyes, and she smiled in greeting. Pina immediately squealed as she saw the familiar black-haired boy that she had taken a liking to. The small dragon landed deftly on his head, circling slightly before settling down contently.

"Hey Silica." He greeted the girl, hands absently reaching up to scratch the pet dragon behind the ears.

"Kirito-kun." She greeted back, happily taking a seat beside him. "You're finally done talking."

"Yea..." He confirmed. Silica noticed his downtrodden expression, and looked at him with concern.

"Is everything alright?" She asked worriedly.

He smiled wryly at the concerned girl, reaching a hand out to ruffle her hair fondly. "It will be." He replied. She smiled at his answer, and didn't press anymore. She trusted him completely.

"You two sure look cozy." Asuna remarked from the side.

Kirito hummed in agreement, while Silica blushed lightly by his side. Asuna sat down on his other side, and sighed as she sunk into the cushy furniture.

"Tired, Asuna?" He asked with a grin. The girl muttered incoherently, leaning her head to rest on his shoulders.

"You're contagious, Kirito-kun." She mumbled, causing him to chuckle.

He leaned his head back, taking care not to dislodge the resting dragon atop his head, and sighed happily. All of his troubles seemed so distant when in the company of his girls. He wondered how that came to be, but decided not to question it too hard. He had long since passed the stage of questioning his relationship with the girls. Instead, he chose to cherish every moment he had with them.

The late afternoon sun bathed the area in a warm glow, and he felt his eyelids grow heavier with each passing moment. The only sound in the room was the soft, rhythmic breathing of the two girls by his side. He wrapped his arms around them and pulled them closer to his side. They snuggled closer to his warmth, eyes already closed in sudden fatigue.

Finally, he closed his eyes in contentment.

* * *

Lisbeth watched with tired eyes as the last of the applicants walked away from the makeshift table that the twins had set up. The sheer number of the players had been incredible, and each of them seemed eager to please. It didn't help that most of them seemed starstruck and wanted to make small talk rather than go on with the short questions.

"Phew." Argo leaned back, stretching her body that had been sitting for the past few hours. Even someone as patient as her was worn down by the applicants. "Finally over..."

There must have been at least 200 players that showed up in order to apply. An absolutely amazing turnout considering how little time the short ad was put up for. Sadly, the majority of the applicants would not be able to join them. Not because of level requirements or game limitations, but because they were only there for their own selfish reasons.

Argo had always been a great judge of character. She was someone that observed from the background, constantly categorizing and judging her surroundings. She could identify a lie a mile away, and could estimate the potential of a player from just their eyes alone. It was because of these skills that she knew just how few of the applicants were viable recruits.

What she was looking for was simple. Loyalty and resolve; the want to grow stronger in order to protect. It was sad that what she had gotten from most of the players was the want to grow stronger by association. They heaped praises on her guild, subtly and sometimes blatantly wishing for a lucky handout, but offering nothing in return.

"We going home now?" Lisbeth asked with a yawn. She had been standing beside Argo as a bodyguard figure. That didn't stop the many players from talking to her however, always asking about the guild and several rumours.

"Yup." Argo said, packing the table away, as it vanished into her inventory with a flash. She scanned the note that she had been writing to herself with a critical eye before saving it. Nodding in satisfaction, she turned to the girls. She had to refrain from laughing aloud as she saw the twins leaning on each other, swaying on their feets. They were barely awake.

"Let's go home girls." Clasping the twins on their back to wake them up, Argo led the way to the gates.

Lisbeth fell into step beside her, while the twins hastily followed. "Neh, Argo-chan, are we really going to recruit some of them?"

Argo glanced at Lisbeth with curiosity. "Maybe, why?"

"They didn't seem serious." She answered frankly. "All of the girls there just wanted to gossip about one thing or another, and the guys... " She shuddered as she recalled their not-so-hidden leers.

"Mmm, you have to look underneath the underneath Lis-chan." Argo chided. It was true that the majority of the players would drag them down. But that wasn't to say that the entire event had been unfruitful. "In fact, I believe we have found ourselves several new recruits today."

At Lisbeth's disbelieving stare, Argo elaborated. "I kept a list of all the names I thought were noteworthy. I'll have the twins run some background checks on the list later." She wanted to make sure that there wasn't anything abnormal about the players. She didn't take any potential candidate at face-value like the other guilds. "After that... I guess we will go through the list together."

"With everyone else?"

"Of course."

Lisbeth hummed in thought. "Does Kirito-kun know about this?" She didn't get her answer from the foxy girl earlier that morning.

"...He will." Argo revealed reluctantly, causing Lisbeth to sigh. It was no secret that Kirito didn't want to recruit more members into the guild, even though many had even approached him personally about it. His initial reason was that the guild was doing fine with just the girls and him, and that any new players would break their cohesion. But that was just to throw them off of the main reason; he was scared. Scared of being responsible for lives that were directly under his command. Even as the leader of the front lines, the few deaths that had happened were shared between the other leaders equally. The girls may have accepted his excuse, but Argo knew the true reason.

"He won't like this." She added.

Argo nodded in agreement. "He won't." She could be insanely stubborn when she wanted to however, and she was sure that Kirito would eventually see her side of things. The simple fact was, they needed people that they could trust. Besides the Fuurinkazan, there were no others that they could trust explicitly.

"But he won't have a choice." She smirked. Kirito was insanely weak when she applied her pleading skills. If she added another one of the girls into the equation, he stood no chance. The only question was which girl to convince.

Her thoughts were interrupted as they approached the teleport gate. The area was devoid of players since it was almost night time. It was a bit sad that the majority of the players seemed too scared to venture out at night, despite the safety of a city.

"Coral!" She shouted into the gate. The world rebuilt itself around her, and she stepped out into the familiar village on the 22nd floor. She waited for the girls to appear beside her before continuing the familiar trek back home. The sun had almost set completely, bathing the area in an eerie orange glow.

Spotting the intricately built gate, she pressed a hand to the engraved emblem, waiting as the gates swung open with a flourish. She skipped along the cobblestone path to the door, waiting impatiently for the other girls to arrive. Lisbeth glared tiredly at her, wondering just how the foxy girl could still be so energetic.

"Hello~" Argo called into the cottage as soon as she stepped inside. She frowned when she didn't get a reply. There should have been all three of them inside, unless they decided to go somewhere without telling her. That would be unforgivable.

"Ki-bou! Sil-chan~, Asuna-chi~"

She was about to yell louder when she spotted the familiar black hair of her favourite boy. From her vantage point, she could only see the back of his head. She saw a flicker of chestnut-brown hair and narrowed her eyes in suspicion. Whirling around the coach she was about to say something when the words caught in her throat.

The scene in front of her was absolutely adorable. Kirito slept with his head tilted slightly to the right, resting atop of a familiar rapier-user's. His sleeping face looked vulnerable and open as usual, and Asuna seemed to be drooling slightly onto the boy's shoulder. What completed the image had to be Silica resting her head on his lap, with her dragon curled up beside her.

"Argo-chan, what's wrong?"

She spotted Lisbeth and the twins looking curiously at her from the entrance, and she simply gestured for them before resuming her staring. They gasped as they took in the same adorable scene.

"So cute..."

Argo suddenly felt a surge of exhaustion fall over her. It seemed like the day had finally caught up to her. Making her way over to the sleeping trio, she sighed as she sat down to the left of Silica. The other girls seemed to get the idea as they took in similar positions on the couch, with the twins resting by the arms.

Everything else could wait. For now, the only thing she wanted was to be at home. With her family.

* * *

He felt a sudden chill fall down his spine, and suddenly this whole idea of theirs didn't seem so appealing anymore. Nonetheless, he pushed down the baseless fear he felt in favour of staring down the monster before him.

"Switch!"

That was his cue, and he hastily stepped in to take the place of his friend. His arms blurred and his trusty dagger swiped through the air in succession. The golem mob exploded into light, and he let out a sigh of relief as the last monster was finally taken out.

"Great job, Ducker."

He smiled at his leader before rubbing the back of his neck. "Come on Keita, that was nothing!"

He shared a smile with Tetsuo and Sasamaru before looking at the lone female member of their team. Sachi had changed considerably since the first weeks of SAO. The previously nervous and shy girl had changed almost overnight since their meeting with the Royal Swords. She now wielded her sword and shield with unflinching grace. The blue-haired girl gave him a pretty smile, and he blushed in return.

His two friends beside him shared a hidden grin, patting his back heavily. "Are you blushing Ducker?"

He sputtered. "O-of course not!"

The group all laughed at his expense, and he pouted. It seemed that he was the butt of their jokes lately. Not that he minded, as he knew it was one of their attempts in keeping up the good mood. Indeed, their training sessions were now filled with laughter and banter. A far cry from the previously somber and heavy sessions.

"Shall we continue?" Sachi called out after they had gulped down their healing potions and waited for their health to fill up.

That feeling was back again. Before he could voice his unease, the rest of the group nodded in affirmative, falling into step as Sachi lead the charge. The narrow corridors of the dungeon seemed to spread wider, the deeper they went in. Sachi, being the shield and sword user volunteered to lead the charge. She had done a superb job so far, calling out rotations at the perfect opportunities.

The group hadn't encountered anything that was out of the ordinary so far. Although the mobs tended to appear in groups, it was nothing they couldn't handle. And if they had to, they could resort to hit and run tactics. They were more than ready to tackle this new dungeon. Their levels were high enough, and their teamwork never faltered.

So why was he feeling so nervous? It was probably because it was the first time they would be attempting a newly discovered dungeon. One that had never been mapped out before. They were aiming for the discovery bonus at the end, something reserved for the first party that cleared it.

Or was it because it was Sachi that was leading them. It was not that he doubted her leadership ability, no, far from it. It was because he was afraid for her safety. Each time she ran into a group of mobs with impunity, he felt his heart drop. Each time she ducked and dodged or brought up her round shield to block, he felt his heart clench. He didn't like her taking the most risk for them.

"Ready?" She asked them. They nodded, including Ducker. He put his feelings aside for the moment as Sachi purposely triggered a floor tile.

The walls around them glowed as the trap was triggered and several golems appeared from the walls. They had repeated this three times already, so it was no surprise when Sachi immediately tackled the furthest ones, taking their attention for the most part. Keita and Tetsuo immediately took on the closest ones. He and Sasamaru had the easier job of striking when the mobs were distracted.

It was now almost routine to them, and as the last golem dispersed into light, they didn't bother with further congratulations. Ducker sipped at a fruity HP potion while scanning his surroundings curiously. Something was triggering one of his passive skills, as there was the green outline of a doorway at the edge of his vision. He was about to call out the oddity to his guildmates when he saw something that made his heart stop.

Sachi had gone inside.

Disregarding everything around him, he dashed forward. All of his considerable AGI points were put into use as he rushed past his startled teammates and into the room that Sachi had just gone into.

"Sachi!"

The girl craned her head around to stare at him in confusion. Her hands were gripping the lid of a elaborate-looking treasure chest. It was opened halfway.

Startled cerulean orbs met his own. His mind raced, everything seemed to slow around him as he took in the situation. There was no time.

The room turned red.

* * *

**A/N: Merry Christmas everyone! **

**Finally an update, now that exams are over****,**** expect regular updates to be back. As a side note, it is really, really hard to write cohesively without an outline. Just a tip for new authors out there (Really should have outlined this story!). **

**Nothing much to say about this chapter, besides that things are in motion. Events are unfolding faster than in canon, and despite Kirito's best efforts, there is little he can do to stop them. He just has to deal with them. **

**Pking may have stopped for now, but it is even worse in some ways. For the pkers, the only way they are going to commit their crimes****,**** is if they plan it with great detail in advance. There is no more regular thugs pking, to be a pker is to be able to outsmart the best of the best. **

**Clearing continues at a fast pace, understandable given the more unified leadership. There is one drawback to this. The group has not been tested under stress, so far the bosses ****have been cleared ****with little difficulty ****using ****the information given by scouts. You can bet there will be issues concerning the 50th floor boss. **

**Thank you for the feedback everyone, and please continue to send me suggestions/ideas/thoughts!**

**Thanks a bunch to n0mster for beta'ing this mess. **

**Visit the forums everyone, I want to see more ideas.**

**Next Chapter: Grey Winter**

_**SAO fic recommendations of the day:**_

_** The One Ultimate Way by LighthawkKnight **_

_** -Hilariously awesome Harem Antics.**_

_** -May contain spoilers for later volumes**_

_** TAIC by Victory3114**_

_** -Interesting concept with Kiriko.**_

_** -Looks to be branching out from canon which is always good.**_


	8. Chapter 8 Grey Winter

"_You're very special Kazu-kun." She murmured into his ear._

"_I am?" He asked, trying to squirm out of her lap to no avail._

"_Of course, dear." She hugged him tightly, stopping his struggling. "Don't let anyone tell you otherwise." _

_He sat in her lap, contemplating her words. She sounded proud yet sad at the same time. "Mommy?" _

"_My little genius... you're going to go so far." She cooed, snuggling against his hair. "And probably break so many hearts in the process." _

_He blushed as she complimented him, not even minding the way she was babying him at the moment. Today was a rare day where their whole family could be together. Usually, either his mother or father were preoccupied with something. _

"_But don't forge_t,_ Kazu-kun." _

_He looked up curiously at his mother. _

"_About those around you." _

* * *

It was cold.

As far as he could see, and all around him, was covered in snow. He was thankful for the lack of snowfall as the biting winds that tore into him were already brutal enough. He trudged on uncaringly, despite his ill-prepared clothing. It was not like he could get sick in this game.

Still, he felt every bit of the cold against him. His high-level leather jacket offered some protection against the weather, though his exposed skin, primarily his face, felt extra cold against the bitter wind. He wished he was at home, by the warmth of the fireplace.

But he couldn't, not after his argument earlier. Immediately, he felt a sense of regret rise from within. It had gotten out of his control, and harsh words were exchanged. It was the first 'fight' he had with any of the girls. Although they liked to bicker and argue sometimes, it had all been in good faith; they never fought with another. They didn't need to, because they all understood and cared for one another.

He never expected to get into a heated argument with Argo of all people. Though she frequently teased and harassed him, he knew that she only did so in order to loosen him up. And every time there was a conflict, she sided with him. Sometimes, he thought that she understood him better than he did. For that reason, he always confided in her.

It wasn't her fault.

He was stubborn. He could freely admit that; it was a trait he shared with his family. Sometimes it was hard to admit when he was wrong. More than that, he should never have accused her of ignoring his feelings. He recalled the flash of hurt on her face as soon as the words flew from his mouth. For a split second, her usually carefree nature was replaced. She truly did care for him.

Shaking his head, he squinted his eyes at the horizon. Though he was in a seemingly endless wasteland of snow, he knew where he was heading. This particular area on the 20th floor was a favourite of his. It was a perfect place to calm down, and to gather his thoughts.

Out of the corner of his eye, he spotted the familiar blinking icon signifying new PM's. He chose to ignore the icon in favour of scanning his surroundings once more. He knew he would be in trouble later on with the girls, for suddenly running out of the house in a fit of anger. For now, he would concentrate on his initial goal.

There was a flicker of movement from his peripheral vision, and he immediately manoeuvred his body to face it. A large shape that was slightly off-coloured compared to its snowy surroundings confirmed his suspicions. The monster seemed content to remain in hiding, not that Kirito minded. He dashed forward, feet crunching loudly in the heavy snow.

As soon as he was within lunging distance, the large mound _erupted_, shaking the surrounding area with its force. Leaping back for the moment, and shielding his eyes from the displaced snow, Kirito waited for the monster to reveal itself. He didn't have to wait long as a loud guttural roar resounded over the tundra. While the beast's fur had blended in with the snow almost perfectly, the only thing that was not a pristine white were its eyes. Two beady orbs of red glared down at him, and the yeti stood up fully, casting a long shadow over him.

To a newer player, the sight of the enormous creature before him would have sent them scurrying. Even for Kirito, these monsters had been a challenge when they had been clearing this floor. They were resilient to the extreme, and went into an enraged state after half of their health had been depleted.

That had been then.

Now, against a player that regularly cleared the 40th floor dungeons, the fearsome beast proved no match. He wasn't here for a challenge, he was simply here to relieve some stress. That was why, as the yeti roared in defiance and charged forward, he remained in his spot unflinchingly.

The large beast was surprisingly mobile, despite its size, and appeared before him in the blink of an eye. As the large hand came crashing down, Kirito brought his favoured sword up. Normally, one could never parry such a blow with a single sword, the sheer power difference would have broken through any guard. Kirito, with his abnormally high strength stats however, proved to be an exception.

He grinned as the beast reared back its arm to try again. The powerful impact was blocked once more in the same fashion. It was satisfying to see the ease in which he could defend against such a monster. He remembered the struggles they had when this was considered the front lines. Even the heaviest of shield-users were sent flying by these large beasts. Now, he felt that even Silica would have zero issues taking down the yeti mob.

The creature roared again, raising both of its hands together and bringing them down with tremendous force in a hammer-like action. Its large, coupled fist glowed a bright red as it came hurtling towards him. Kirito lept deftly to his left, not willing to take on a «Sword Skill» like that head-on. The yeti remained stunned for a brief second, which Kirito utilized to his advantage. He jumped onto the closest arm, breaking into a sprint upwards. Leaping just as the creature regained control of its arms, Kirito readied his own «Sword Skill».

At the apex of his jump, he realized that he could not reach the monster's face with his sword. Thinking quickly, his hands immediately followed the motions to trigger his most recently acquired «Vorpal Strike». It was a highly accelerated stab that resulted in a jagged flash of purple extending from his sword. The monster reared back in pain, the strike landing right between its eyes.

Kirito eyed the mob's HP bar decreasing rapidly with some surprise. It seemed that his new «Sword Skill» had such a long cooldown for a reason. Its damage potential was absurd, especially when you considered the bonus reach it added. Numerous scenarios flashed through his mind, and he immediately found a new favourite skill. After leveling his «One Handed Sword Skill» to 950, he supposed that it was worth it.

The moan of pain was suddenly cut off, immediately changing into a deep snarl. The creature's smooth white fur turned a jagged grey, signalling its transition into its enraged mode. Now, it would be much faster, and stronger, while its fur would become much thicker. Kirito supposed that he should have been worried, rather than excited.

He ducked just in time to dodge a swipe from the yeti, feeling the displacement of the air from the sheer speed of the attack. Leaping back to avoid a powerful fist, he decided to stop playing. He needed to finish this, and go on home. Parrying the next blow, he rushed towards the beast, past its guard. His sword flashed, leaving long streaks of red as he ducked past an attempt to grab him. Twirling around the creature's short legs, he slashed repeatedly at its stout body.

He didn't need to think, only react. His body continued to dance past the creature's clumsy attempts with graceful steps. His hands continued to guide his sword all the while, increasing in speed with each passing moment. This was not something that he showed often, even to his guild. Most would have called him careless, and perhaps even cocky. But this was how he fought best.

With an overwhelming offensive.

One after another, he chained his sword skills together to form a violent, yet beautiful dance of death. Fragments of light flashed all around him, as the creature's HP was carved away bit by bit. Nothing would survive such an onslaught for long. At last, the creature let out a final cry of pain, as its HP bar was finally depleted. It dispersed in a shattering of light, bringing silence to the clearing.

Kirito sighed, sheathing his sword. The fight was rather cathartic, but it hadn't been a challenge. There was no point in remaining however, as the yeti mob was a rare spawn, he would need to travel quite a distance to find another one. The blinking icon in the corner of his vision reminded him of his priorities. With a heavy heart, he began the long trudge back home, dreading the inevitable scolding he would receive.

He would have to apologize to Argo, that was for sure. She never failed him before, and deep down, he knew that she was looking out for him. His reasoning for not wanting to recruit more members was not because he couldn't see the benefits. Far from it, since he knew how unreliable some of the clearers were. No, it was his own selfishness that prevented him from supporting her idea.

Ever since the beginning of this death game, he had tried to justify his playing style. He went solo because it was the most efficient way for himself, and by becoming strong, he could clear this game faster _for _others. Or at least, that was what he told himself. In actuality, he was scared of that responsibility. To have people looking up to him, trusting him with their lives... the very thought was daunting.

It didn't help that the very first encounter he had with another player after the announcement was with someone who had tried to kill him. The selfishness in Coper's actions had left a deep scar, and despite Kirito's rational side, he had never forgotten that moment completely. The moment where he saw the true extent of human fear. To be willing to murder someone over a thing such as a quest reward... it was disgusting.

It was starting to snow now. He wasn't surprised, the weather on this particular floor was highly inconsistent. One moment could be crystal blue skies, the next an intense hail storm. It was something that had proved to be a major annoyance when they were clearing the floor. The heavy snow impairing his vision harshly, Kirito could barely see a few yards in front of him, and he was glad that he knew the way by heart.

He suddenly stopped.

There was a figure at the edge of his vision. He rubbed at his eyes in disbelief, before squinting them. Sure enough, the familiar green cursor indicating a player-controlled character hovered over the head of the figure. The player was facing away from him, in a crouched position. There was little he could distinguish from his current distance, but the sight of a player on this usually empty floor was quite unusual.

Just as he was about to shout out a greeting, the figure slowly stood up, brandishing a weapon in the process. The chosen weapon seemed to gleam despite the harsh snowfall around them. It seemed to be a spear, made of a glittering ruby crystal. He did not recognize anything about the weapon, but even from his limited point of view, he could tell that it was in a class of its own, surpassing any player-made weapon.

Hefting the spear, the player seemed to prepare him or herself to throw the weapon. But that was foolish, as there was nothing to be gained from throwing the spear in such a way. The «Weapon Throw» skill was not usable on spears, it was restricted to small, light-oriented weapons. The player did not seem to care, however, and readied the weapon over his or her shoulders.

The stormy hail of snow seemed to let up for a moment, allowing Kirito to see what the target of this strange player seemed to be. It was a small creature, and much like most of the mobs on this floor, blended in perfectly with the snow. The «White-Furred Fox» was by far the rarest mob on the floor. It was known to drop an S-Ranked «Raw Material» item with each kill, and its spawn rate was incredibly low. It shared one other known feature with rare mobs of the same type; it sprinted away at the first sign of danger.

The player threw the ruby spear with fluidity, and to Kirito's shock, it _flew _through the air. A blue glow enveloped the intricate weapon as it soared towards its target. The speed far exceeded what he could normally achieve with throwing weapons. The fox mob had no chance, and promptly disintegrated into glowing particles. To further his shock, the ruby spear glowed briefly before disappearing. It appeared back in its owner's hand. Astounded at what he had just witnessed, he gasped.

The player turned around sharply, alarmed at the noise.

The snow had stopped, and everything was clear as day. The player's hood fell over at the sudden motion, allowing Kirito a glimpse at the face of the spear-user.

Startled violet orbs met his stare head-on.

* * *

He walked up the steps of the Inn slowly, trying to gather his thoughts. At the top of the stairs, he caught the gaze of his friend. He shared a gloomy nod with the boy, and noted that he looked notably ragged. He probably looked worse himself.

"Anything?" He asked softly. The boy shook his head sadly in answer. He wasn't surprised. Sighing as he passed his friend, he patted him on the shoulders before continuing. He was hurting... but then again, they were all hurting.

He arrived at the entrance to the long hallway of the inn. This place had been their home since the beginning of this death game. It was comforting to come 'home' every day, despite the fact that they did not own this building. But it was theirs anyway, becoming theirs by virtue of staying here every night since the beginning. Their home had always been a welcoming place after a long day of training.

Now, the house felt foreign to him, almost alien.

This particular inn was small in comparison to the others, only consisting of five rooms available for rent. At the beginning, they could only afford two rooms. One room was always reserved for Sachi, as a female, while the males shared the rest. Eventually, they were able to afford a separate room for each of them. Essentially, the inn had become theirs, as long as they paid their rent.

He walked down the narrow corridor with soft, hesitant steps. As he passed the third door down, he paused. Shaking his head, he moved on. There was no need to get lost in his thoughts once again. He had done enough of that lately. Now, he had to move on.

At the end of the corridor, leaning against the wall and facing the last door of the inn, was a boy with curly hair. The boy was looking down in a daze when he finally noticed his approach. He shook his head, and joined him by the wall.

"How is she?" He asked in a hushed whisper.

The boy sighed before answering. "She hasn't responded at all, Keita."

"You try knocking?"

"Every few minutes or so."

They stood there in silence, each wondering how to proceed. Keita stared at the door in quiet contemplation. He supposed that it was up to him now. He owed it to them all, as the leader of their guild. As the one who brought them into this death game... and the one who had failed them.

Stepping up to the door, he knocked twice firmly on the wood. Each hit resounded, echoing loudly through the corridor.

"Sachi." He called out with a level tone.

There was no response. He had not expected any, but he had to try. He knew she could hear him, despite being on the other side of a wall. Normally, all sounds would be blocked out once you closed a door. It was a privacy feature of SAO that was well known to all players. If you were in the same guild or party however, that privacy feature was removed.

"Sachi." He tried again, this time with a louder voice.

Still no response. It was plain to see that Sachi was deliberately ignoring them. With a loud sigh, he backed away from the door. There was nothing he could do for the moment, other than to give the girl some space.

"I... we will be out in the hallway, Sachi." He said hollowly. Sharing a sad look with Sasamaru he sat down against the opposing wall.

Inside the room, a girl sat lifelessly on her bed. She heard the voices of her guildmates, heard their concerned tones. But she did not acknowledge them... would not acknowledge them. Not when they couldn't understand. What she had done was unforgivable. Someone like her did not deserve their concern.

A murderer. That was who she was.

Her mind continued to replay a certain scene back to her. A whirlwind of emotions surged through her, but there was one that constantly rose to the surface.

Regret.

* * *

The cottage was just as he had left it. There didn't seem to be anything amiss as he traveled the familiar cobblestone steps to the front door. The entire area was bathed in a dull orange light, indicating the approaching sunset. Usually, arriving back home would fill him with a sense of relief. Now however, he felt hesitant, and dare he say it, fearful.

He stood before the doors nervously, unsure if he should just walk in or knock first. He usually just walked in, but with the way he had left the girls... it might be better to knock. He gathered himself before raising his hand. He was just about to knock on the door when it flew open.

"Kirito-kun!"

"Oof."

He was immediately embraced by a familiar chestnut-haired girl. The force of the embrace caused him to stumble back, and to almost fall over. The girl in his arms seemed content to remain in his arms while he steadied himself.

"A-asuna?" He called out. Hesitantly, he embraced her back, surprised at her display of affection.

The girl nuzzled into his chest for a split second before stiffening. She suddenly pushed him away, holding him at an arms length. Her eyes narrowed in suspicion and anger. "Where. Have. You. Been!" Each word was accompanied by a sharp poke to his chest.

He chuckled nervously, rubbing the back of his neck in an innocent gesture. "Uhm..."

Before he could formulate a possible defense, several heads peaked out from the door.

"Kirito!"

"Oof!"

A feeling of deja-vu rose from within him as he was promptly tackled by two separate blurs. He had to smile as Lisbeth and Silica embraced him in a similar manner. It seemed that they were all worried about him, and he felt touched. He felt regretful as the girls began scolding him, but did not protest as he was led inside.

He was pushed into the living room, and shoved into the soft loveseat. The girls promptly surrounded him and began their interrogation. He did not complain, knowing that the fiery looks in their eyes meant they were in a dangerous mood, despite the relieved expressions.

"So? Where have you been?" Lisbeth asked sternly, hands by her hips. He absently noted that she fitted the stern role quite naturally. He would never voice that aloud of course.

"Just on the 20th floor, I wanted to cool off." He answered truthfully. And if his method of cooling off was to hunt down some elite mobs... well, he still wasn't lying.

She narrowed her eyes in slight suspicion, causing Kirito to shiver slightly. To his relief, she slowly softened her glare.

"We were worried about you... idiot." She said the last part in a whisper.

"I know... I'm sorry." He said quietly, taking in the concerned expressions from all of the girls around him. Silica even seemed to be teary-eyed, while the twins were sniffling softy in the back. He never meant for it to be taken this far.

"I..." His voice trailed off. "Where is she?"

He wanted to apologize to the girl he had wronged, and the fact that she was not here did not bode well. The girls all shared a look, causing a feeling of dread to creep through his heart.

"She's upstairs, Kirito-kun." Asuna told him reluctantly. "You really hurt her you know."

Lisbeth and Silica nodded. "She ran up the stairs as soon as you left." Lisbeth added.

"I've never seen Argo-chan like that..." Silica frowned, recalling the tortured expression that had been on the girl's face. It had looked completely bizarre on her usually grinning features.

"I..." He didn't know what to say. He sat still for a moment, then slowly got up and began to make his way over to the stairs.

The girls watched him go silently, each of them hoping for the best. This had been the first time any of them had actually fought with one another. Hopefully it would be the last, because the world had been one big mess the entire day.

Kirito traversed the wooden staircase in silence, inwardly thinking on how to apologize to his friend. He didn't know what he was thinking when he had yelled at her in the first place. There had been no reason to, because if he truly insisted, then she would have caved in; that he was sure of. She wouldn't have liked it, but there was a reason why she valued his opinion. She respected him.

The hallway was dimly lit, as the sun had begun to set and the lights had not yet been switched on. From his view of the hallway, he could see that the double-doors to the second floor balcony was wide open.

He felt his feet take him to the balcony, despite his growing reluctance. As he arrived at the doorway to the balcony, he spotted her.

Her auburn locks fluttered lightly in the evening breeze, and he was suddenly stricken by the sight. She did not have her make-up applied, showing a perfectly unblemished face. From his vantage point he could only see her side profile, but her expression... was completely blank as she stared out over the balcony. Her eyes held a dull glow, a contrast from her usual vibrant brown orbs.

She looked... alone.

He found himself just staring at her for a few moments, not knowing what to say. He hadn't needed to begin, as Argo seemed to sense him.

"Kirito-kun." She mumbled, turning her head slightly so that she could look at him. Her mouth twitched upwards for a grin, but fell swiftly. She turned away from him; the action hurt him, but he understood why.

"Argo..." He called her name softly, and after a pause, slowly continued, "I..."

He stepped closer, but stopped halfway. He wanted to apologize, but couldn't formulate the right words. He wanted to tell her that he was wrong, and that he had been selfish. She had been looking out for him, and instead of appreciating her efforts, he spurned her.

Sighing, he closed the gap between them and embraced her from behind. He smiled as she squeaked loudly at the action. She went stiff in his arms, but he didn't mind, he wanted to convey something to her.

"I'm sorry." He whispered into her ears.

Those two words seemed to sap the strength from the girl in his arms. She sunk into his embrace and Kirito had to tighten his hold in order to keep her upright. "A-argo?"

She mumbled quietly in a low voice. He looked down in confusion as he could not hear what she was saying. "Argo?" He asked again.

She turned suddenly around in his hold, facing him head-on. "You're not fair, Kirito-kun..." She murmured, adding to his confusion. "I'm supposed to be mad at you." She buried her face into the crook of his neck, suddenly hugging him back. "And yet..."

He smiled sadly. "My bad." He apologized with a quiet tone, receiving a soft giggle in return. The two of them were content to remain in each others' arms for the moment. The sun had finally set, casting the area into sudden darkness. A moment later, the lighting system came to life, and the two lanterns by the door bathed the area in its ethereal glow.

It was Kirito who broke the silence. "I was selfish." He said. Argo gave no indication she heard him, but did not interrupt him. "You were right, and I was wrong." He continued, this time receiving a 'hmph' from the girl. "Do you forgive me?" He finally asked.

She slowly broke away from the deep embrace, eyeing him with a carefully neutral expression. He was worried for a moment, before she smirked mischievously. "That depends, Ki-bou." She said coyly. "What do I get in return?" She sniggered.

Sighing aloud, but inwardly, he was glad to see a sign of the old Argo. It seemed that she was willing to forgive him after all. He resigned himself to doing whatever she wanted for the time being; after all, he had brought it all down upon them. From now on, he vowed to trust the girl in front of him completely. She deserved nothing less.

Laughing lightly, she took his arm in hers. "Come on, Ki-bou, let's see what Asuna-chi has for dinner."

Humming as she led them towards the others, she abruptly looked back at him in curiosity. "Where did you go anyway?"

Her question immediately reminded him of something that had happened earlier today. He had put the encounter to the back of his mind since entering the cottage, but now that Argo had forgiven him, it was brought back to the front.

"About that, is it possible for you to find information about a particular player?" He asked. She looked at him in disbelief, as if she could not believe what she had just heard. "I mean with just a description." He added quickly, not wanting to insult her knowledge-gathering prowess.

"Of course!" She answered smugly. "I know everything and everyone!"

Kirito smiled at her exuberant answer. He didn't know why the brief encounter had sparked his interest so badly, but there was one thing that he knew for sure.

Those eyes, those purple orbs... he recognized them.

* * *

The area around him was very familiar. It was a short distance away from the southern gates of the «Starting City». Its major landmark was a tall willow tree that towered over the immediate area. With a scattering of large rocks, a couple of fallen logs that littered the area, and being enveloped by a large pond... It was a scene of tranquility.

Kirito felt nostalgic as he took in the scenery. The very first time he had encountered this area was a week into the game. He had been ragged from the excessive amount of grinding he had been doing. As he began the long trek back to his home, he accidently stumbled upon this place. At night, the pond glittered with an ethereal light, and the willow tree rustled gently in the breeze. He fell asleep at the foot of the tree, and for the first time in that week, he had woken up fully rested.

The second time he encountered the area, was when he arranged for the first meeting of the clearers. He had been filled with a nervous trepidation that day. Full of doubt and second guesses. What if they did not listen? What if he only served to highlight their differences? And what if it was an impossibility after all? Somewhere along the way, he lost his doubts. He gained something that day. A measure of hope.

Now, returning to the beginning, and coming to this very area... Kirito had no more doubts. He wasn't the one with the doubts however, as the myriad of players around the area interacted nervously with one another. He eyed them with slight amusement, wondering why they seemed so twitchy. It probably had something to do with the way Argo was eyeing them, a predatory expression on her face.

It was quite a different bunch of players they had gathered here today. Spanning from players who had barely leveled up at all, to players that could have been on the front lines. They were all painstakingly selected between the five of them, after carefully examining the details that Argo and the twins provided. They were mostly looking only for one thing; loyalty and potential.

In that regard, a good majority of the players in the clearing were actually part of an existing party or group. These stragglers were those that did not join a major guild, and instead partied with one another. There was a surprising number of these groups of players, who did not fit into any of the existing categories. Typically, you placed the players of Aincrad into three groupings. Those who did not fight, such as the majority of the merchant classes, and those who had given up on clearing were in the first group. Then there were those who fell into the middle-tier, those who 'played' the game, venturing out carefully several floors below the front lines. Lastly, you had the clearers, who took to the front lines.

These were friends who gathered together, each of them with different levels of resolve. Even if some of them were strong enough to fight on the front lines, they chose to stay with their friends. It was an admirable trait, and that was why Argo primarily selected them. Loyalty to friends was something to be prized.

There was an abundance of girls in the crowd, much to his surprise. It seemed that a good many of the female players had banded together in small groups. That did not mean they were weak however, as he could tell from the determination in their eyes, that they were willing to fight. Some of them threw him an errant glance every now and then.

"So, what do you think?" A voice asked from behind him.

He turned around casually, not surprised to find Argo smirking, arms crossed with a smug expression on her face. She had reason to be smug after all, being the one to assemble the crowd before him. It was one thing to read up on all of the information on a certain player, it was another to see them in person. And judging by how they handled themselves, the information that Argo provided was uncannily accurate.

"They have potential." He admitted. If all of the information that she provided were true, then he could see several of them working together. Now, he just needed to make sure that they were all willing. "So... how do we do this?" He asked curiously.

Argo blinked. "Uhm... you're the leader." She stated, as if that answered his question.

He sighed at her response. He wasn't really surprised at her behaviour however, and began to gesture for the girls to gather. Asuna, Lisbeth, and Silica had been engaging several of the groups in conversation, but broke off as they saw his signalling. They arrived promptly, giving him a curious glance.

"Right, well, since I have no idea how to... recruit someone, let's just go with your personal opinions." He stated.

"Ah, what do you mean?" Lisbeth asked. "Just talk to them?"

"Really?"

"Not very smooth, Ki-bou." Argo teased, to which he sent her an exasperated look.

"I trust your judgement." He told the girls. "If you think that they can work with us, then invite them."

All of the girls had an Officer role in the guild system, meaning they could freely invite members as they pleased. None of them had taken advantage of this feature, except for Argo. They all nodded in understanding.

"Alright, I'll talk to the girls on the left." Asuna said with a grin. She had made friends with the large group of female players as soon as they had entered the clearing. It seemed that they had connected with her, judging by their looks of happiness as she walked over to them.

The other girls followed in a similar manner, each of them taking a general direction and grabbing the attention of the players scattered there. Hopefully, they would be able to get a good feeling just from conversing, as Kirito did not know any other manner of assessing the members. He believed that every player had the potential, and that it was only their level of commitment that held them back.

He looked to his right, finding the adorable sight of Silica nervously looking around, trying to decide if she should be joining them in recruiting. Pina sat on her shoulders, looking startled as his owner seemed quite agitated.

"It's fine Silica." He said, startling the girl slightly. He patted her head fondly. "I think they can handle it."

Indeed, the girls had found a tempo that seemed to work, judging by the serious expressions on the players' faces. They each paid rapt attention as the girls spoke, and did not interrupt unless they were asked a question. He found it oddly humorous that Argo was talking amiably with a small group of male players, as they seemed to tower over her short stature. Lisbeth was talking with another mixed group, apparently appraising their weapons for some reason.

"Ah, but I- I wanted to help." Silica said sadly, pouting as she remained by his side. Kirito simply chuckled, furthering the girl's pout.

"Come, sit with me." He said in a soft tone. She fell into step beside him, and he led the two towards the lake. He figured that the girls could handle things for now.

He sat down atop a fallen log, and Silica sat next to him, her legs dangling over the edge of the water. Pina flew over the lake in happiness, and together, the two of them gazed out into the glittering mass of water. It really was a serene sight. He supposed that the recruiting was going well, surpassing his original expectations. All of the potential recruits really did seem to be interested in joining their guild, and not just because of their reputation.

"Neh, Kirito-kun." She asked from beside him.

"Mmm?"

She looked back curiously at the gathered recruits, before turning back to him. "Do we really need to recruit more people?" She asked curiously, her head tilted to the side. "I mean, we have been doing fine haven't we?"

Kirito sent her a smile. The girl beside him was someone that had surprised him time and time again. Despite her short stature, Silica had proved herself to be someone worthy of fighting alongside them. In the beginning, he wouldn't have minded if the younger girl had decided to step back from the boss battles. She never did, and instead, seemed almost eager to battle these days.

"We have." He agreed. "But the main reason we are doing this... well, it isn't entirely for ourselves."

Silica looked confused at that. "Not for ourselves?" She asked.

"It's for everyone else. The players that came here today, they all have the same goal as us." He said wistfully. "But not all of them have had the advantages that we had."

"Advantages... ah..." Silica thought for a moment. "You mean you and Argo-chan?"

Kirito hummed in agreement. He never tried to hide the fact that he had been a beta tester, as he had felt that it would only help others. Argo was the same way, but chose to use her beta tester knowledge in a more discreet manner. The information booklet that she had contrived in the beginning had probably saved countless number of lives.

"We did try out best in the beginning, to help as many as we can." He remembered coming back from his training sessions a tired mess, but still tried to help any players he encountered on the way.

"It had been a mess in the beginning, and it still is at times." He admitted. In the first few weeks, tensions had been incredibly high, and he felt himself refraining from helping out as much. Somewhere along the way, he gave up entirely on offering help.

Silica nodded, remembering the atmosphere of those days. It had been suffocating. "The same goal..." She murmured.

"We need all the help we can get, in order to clear this game." He finished. Instead of hiding and wasting the days away, he felt that the majority of the population should be helping to clear the game. It was a worrisome sight, to see a good portion of the playerbase simply give up, and try their best to live in the game.

"I see..." She seemed to consider his words, brows furrowed in thought.

Kirito sighed in slight exasperation, suddenly pulling the smaller girl to his side.

"Eep!"

"You're overthinking it, Silica." He ruffled the girls hair, causing her to pout. "Don't worry, with those three leading the way, there's nothing to worry about."

The smaller girl had to giggle at that. If there was a force of nature in Aincrad, then it was probably the trio of girls that were currently doing the recruitment work. They were incredibly scary when they had the same goal in mind.

The two fell into companionable silence, content to simply observe the beautiful scenery around them. She rested her head against his side, and he brought her closer to him. The girl seemed content for the moment.

Looking around the area carefully, he made note of how many people they would be recruiting. Since the players were all in groups, he doubted that they would join without all of the other members of their party. Altogether there were about two dozen new members that would be joining them, if they were all accepted. It was a novel idea, and he wasn't entirely sure how to feel about it.

He was startled out of his thoughts when a resounding -ding- sounded throughout the clearing. Initially, he thought it came from one of the gathered players, but soon found the blinking icon at the edge of his vision. Somebody had sent him a PM.

"Kirito-kun?" Silica asked, jolting him from his thoughts.

"Ah, just a PM..." He trailed off, frowning as he brought up the game menu.

His friend's list was very short, with only the girls and a scattering of contacts being on it. If it was not the girls that contacted him, then it was probably one of his contacts on the front lines. He hoped it was not anything that would be a cause for concern. He certainly had enough of that these days.

The message was from Keita. Kirito blinked at the PM on display, he could not imagine what the leader of the Black Cat's wanted from him. It had been a month or so since they had last contacted one another. He knew the girls kept in touch with Sachi, but he himself did not really socialize with the others.

As he scanned the contents of the brief message, his brows furrowed in alarm. There wasn't any details in the message... but it left a sinking feeling in his gut.

_Keita: We need your help Kirito. Please answer as soon as you can._

He stood up swiftly.

* * *

The main city of the first floor was as massive as ever. Of course, having been designed to be able to house 10,000 people at the same time, its size was quite reasonable. It had been a comforting sight to the majority of the players who had made it their home. As the weeks continued to pile on however, they began to grow sick of the familiar buildings and structures. It began to feel like a prison.

A part of the reason why people constantly moved up to the upper floors was because they did not want to be reminded of their current state. The «Starting City» was essentially the place where there nightmare began. As such, a good number of players had left the city for good, choosing to never return. Those who remained however... stayed because they still clung on to that small fragment of hope. To huddle in safety, never venturing beyond the first floor, and to wait. Wait for their rescue.

Kirito did not understand how the players could remain day after day in the city, especially after almost a year had passed. Did they not realise their situation? That they were alone, and that the only chance they had of escaping was to fight. He hoped that they would realize the truth soon, because they would need all the help they could get in order to fully clear this game.

"There's still so many people here..." Asuna whispered from his side. He nodded in agreement, seeing the amount of attention they drew.

"They never moved on." He said in answer to her unspoken question. They mostly loitered in the streets, conversing with each other, and sometimes the merchants. This was not like the crowds on the upper levels however, as the general atmosphere was quite depressing. Their eyes were dull and their expressions hopeless.

As they traversed the wide streets of the city, most of the crowd moved out of the way for them. He made quite the sight along with Asuna, both of them dressed regally in their royal uniform. From just their clothing alone, they already made a stark contrast with their surroundings. Most of the players had transitioned to basic cloth armour, made for comfort wear. There were no signs of weaponry, a strange sight considering the nature of the game.

Some of them recognized the two, and whispers broke out as they passed them. He supposed it was only natural, having rarely been to the «Starting City» since the first floor was cleared. Especially now that it was peak hours.

They did not have to walk far to get to their destination. The store they stopped at was one of the more expensive restaurants in the city. That did not mean much, considering how high leveled they were. The most expensive items in this restaurant did not hold a candle to the luxurious shops currently on the front line.

The sign outside of the shop illustrated the head of a boar, and matched the theme of high quality wood that was prevalent along the street. Stepping inside of the restaurant, he held the door open for Asuna. She gave him a smile as she stepped inside.

As they entered the restaurant, they were immediately hit by the scent of smoke. The low lighting took a toll on their eyes, and they had to squint for several moments, getting used to the light. It had a 'bar' type of feel to it, being mostly outfitted with wooden furniture. There was a scattering of players in the restaurant, and they briefly glanced up at the duo that entered. They quickly averted their eyes when Kirito scanned the room.

He saw the lone figure sitting by the corner almost immediately, and gestured for Asuna to follow him. As they arrived at the table, he took in the male player before him appraisingly. There was definitely something wrong in the general atmosphere, as the player in front of him seemed to be half-dead.

"Keita-san?" He asked, startling the man. He sat up suddenly, eyes wide and snapping at every direction in a panic. As he saw the two in front of him, he immediately relaxed, sinking back down into his seat.

"A-ah... Kirito-san, Asuna-san." He muttered, holding a hand to his chest, trying to calm his erratic breathing. His eyes looked bloodshot, causing Kirito to frown.

"Keita-san, are you okay?" Asuna asked in slight alarm. The usually friendly and talkative player in front of them seemed to be a completely different person.

"I'm fine." He replied in a tired voice, not reassuring them one bit.

Kirito examined him with a critical eye. "When was the last time you slept, Keita-san?" He asked sharply.

The player before them did not answer, merely choosing to stare down at the table. He shared a look of concern with Asuna, before sitting down across from him. They sat in a restless silence for a few moments.

"I... I don't know how to say this." Keita began tonelessly, he refrained from looking up at them.

"Take it easy, Keita-san." Kirito encouraged slightly. The player in front of him shifted slightly, clenching his fist that were on the table. He relaxed the gesture after a few moments, seemingly forcing himself to relax.

"Ducker is gone." He stated hollowly.

Kirito blanched, surprise and shock apparent on his face. He sunk into his seat in disbelief.

"...What?" Asuna asked, confusion evident on her face. She did not make the connection yet. She was someone who did not immediately think the worst of a given situation.

Kirito was someone who did. "You mean... ?"

"He's dead." Keita finished in an emotionless voice. Asuna immediately gasped, bringing her hands up to cup her mouth in horror. "It was my fault." He added.

He understood now, given the situation at hand. The death of a guild member... it was something that kept him up at times. Nightmares about one of the girls dying as a consequence of a boss battle gone wrong, or in a dungeon. But the reality of the situation was something that he had experienced before.

The death of a player under his command. The first time it happened, he had been speechless, utterly shocked. It happened so fast, that he could not even associate the dispersing polygons with the fallen player. Death in Aincrad was a brutal procedure... because it happened in a flash, leaving no sign that the player, a human being, had lived.

But those deaths were not a direct result of his actions, he could only imagine what Keita must be feeling right now.

"Is everyone else safe?" He asked, unsure if he wanted an answer.

"Yes." Keita replied simply. "But... " He trailed off, trying to formulate the right words. "Sachi." He finished.

Asuna gasped once again. "Oh no... " She could only imagine what the poor girl must be feeling right now. Sachi had told her that the people in her guild were her family, and that, if not for them, she would be hopelessly lost.

"How is she?" Kirito asked in place of Asuna. He himself, was worried too, as the timid girl had made an impression on all of them over the past few months. Their most recent meeting had been when they had helped them tackle a dungeon together, and to their surprise, she had been the one leading the way.

"Not so well, since..." The leader of the Black Cats did not know how to properly say it. "She was the only one who saw Ducker... when he died."

Asuna had grabbed Kirito's hands under the table, and squeezed it for comfort. It was more for her own, as she seemed to be on the edge of her seat. He knew that she wanted to immediately go to the girl, and could not blame her. Friends were important.

"What happened, Keita?" He asked seriously. The Black Cats had been at the point where they could be considered a mid-tiered guild. They had been steadily reducing the gap between the front lines, and had been tackling the dungeons that were a few floors below.

"I don't know." Keita answered helplessly, shaking his head in despair. "I mean... one moment we were clearing the dungeon perfectly, our HP bar barely falling, and the next..." He closed his eyes, remembering the startled shouts as Ducker sprinted past them. "The next... " He couldn't finish.

Kirito grimaced, trying to imagine the scene. "Where was it?" He asked.

Keita took a moment before answering. "It was an «Undiscovered Dungeon» on the 27th floor." His tone was broken as he continued. "We... we thought we could do it. I- I truly believed that we could." He swallowed. "I failed them."

He wanted to open his mouth and assure him that he did not, but knew that his words would be empty. This was a combination of survivor's guilt, and of course, the guilt that came with being a leader. "You didn't know." He said simply.

"That's the point. I didn't know." He scrunched his eyes in pain. "I didn't know anything... about the dungeon... about the game..." He recalled how Ducker had been explaining to him a few weeks before, about how some of the traps worked in a dungeon. Ducker had been their resident 'thief' class, even before becoming trapped in SAO. He was one of the players that really got into their role, so much that they tended to research every bit of information in order to best play their part. He had overlooked the information, and zoned out on his excitable ramblings.

"Keita..."

"We heard Sachi shouting, and when we got there... she was pointing at a door, crying and screaming, and... we just watched... we..." He slammed his fists onto the table, startling the two of them, and the few patrons of the restaurant. "He died alone." He added in a whisper.

There was complete silence, as all eyes turned to the wreck of a player. He had tears streaming down his face. The sight was hard to take in. Kirito turned around to glare at the curious eyes of the diners, causing most of them to look away.

Keita rubbed away the tears on his face, taking a moment to compose himself. Kirito and Asuna sat there awkwardly, neither of them knowing what to do.

"Kirito-san... Asuna-san..." He said softly, this time with a pleading tone. "I need- no, Sachi needs your help."

"Of course, anything we can do Keita-san." He assured him.

"Thank you." He met their gaze for a few seconds, genuinely appreciating their help. "We're... hurting, but Sachi... we don't know what to do. She hasn't come out of her room in the past three days, and nothing we say or do can get her to answer us." He revealed with a grimace.

"Three days?" Asuna gasped, alarmed. Although you would not perish from the lack of food or water in SAO, it took a very special mindset in order to constantly ignore the natural urges. She herself had done the same thing in the first week, barely remembering what she had been doing at the time.

Keita nodded solemnly. "We've been taking turns outside of her room... just looking out for her, but..." He looked away. "She won't talk to us."

Kirito shared a look with Asuna, and was unsurprised to see the resolve in her eyes. Looking back towards Keita, he gave him a firm stare. "We will do our best, Keita-san."

A look of relief washed over the solemn leader. "Thank you... once again..." He stood up, and bowed low. He watched on as the two stood up, and began to make their way out of the restaurant.

He stared at the backs of the two strongest players in Aincrad, hesitating before following.

"If only I were stronger..." He whispered, his voice unheard.

* * *

The inn was just as he remembered it; small and quaint, it gave off a homely aura. He walked in slowly, almost afraid of what he would find inside. Asuna and Keita followed him in a moment later.

They ignored the standard greeting from the inn-keeper, in favour of making their way up the stairs. At the top of the stairs, Kirito waited for the two to catch up. Looking down the corridor, he saw the two familiar faces of Sasamaru and Tetsuo. The two of them were leaning against the wall, facing the very last door of the hall. They shared the same gloomy and desperate look as their guild leader. It seemed that none of the Black Cats had been sleeping.

Keita led the three of them down the corridor, immediately attracting the attention of his two guild members. They looked up with surprise as they took in the regal uniforms of the two players behind him.

"Keita!" Tetsuo exclaimed. He blinked as Kirito and Asuna came up next to his guild leader. "Kirito-san, Asuna-san..." He trailed off, unsure of what to say.

"Tetsuo." Kirito greeted. He shared a look with Asuna, neither of them knew what to say.

Thankfully, it was Keita who came to their rescue. "They're here to help." He stated firmly.

Sasaumaru and Tetsuo nodded, and made room for the three of them. They walked past the two, and stopped before the door that was undoubtedly Sachi's, given Keita's solemn expression.

He gave the two of them a small glance, before turning his attention to the door. He knocked twice, each knock resounding loudly. "Sachi." He called out. "There's someone here to see you."

The group waited awkwardly outside of the door, awaiting some sort of acknowledgement from the girl inside.

There was none.

"Keita-san." Kirito grabbed the leader's attention. "Perhaps it would be better if you left us alone with her." He offered.

He did not know what Sachi was feeling, but he could guess that a big part of her not wanting to talk had to do with her guild members. It would be a slight chance, but it might be better if Sachi only heard from a voice that she confided in.

"I..." Keita started to say, but closed his mouth. "Alright." He agreed with a sigh. He was simply too tired to argue for the moment. "Just... do your best." He called over his shoulders.

He grabbed the remaining two members of his damaged guild before walking away from them. Asuna and Kirito watched the trio trudge on in a defeated manner. The atmosphere was gloomy and filled with despair. They could not fault them for that however, as one of the pillars of their group had fallen. Never to rise again.

"What do we do now, Kirito-kun?" Asuna asked in a low whisper. She was incredibly worried for Sachi, but did not know how to proceed. It was hard to talk to someone you could not see after all.

"She should be able to hear us... we're on her friends list." He noted softly. He had been surprised when the shy girl had added him as a friend, but had gladly accepted. She sent him the odd private message now and then, often asking for tips.

He took a moment to think, before nodding. "Talk to her Asuna, you know her better than I do."

It was true, as Asuna and the girls frequently met with Sachi on a regular basis. What they got up to when they were together was a mystery to him. But one thing he knew for sure, was that Asuna had made a great friend in the blue-haired girl. He felt that the girl beside him would have a much better chance than anyone else at getting through to the girl.

Asuna hesitated, looking worried and nervous at the same time. She swallowed, and seemed to gather all of her resolve. Turning to face the door, she cleared her throat, before knocking.

"Sachi?" She called out hesitantly. Her ears were pressed against the door, hoping to hear a hint of the girl hidden inside. "Sachi." She repeated, this time in a louder voice.

There was a very faint sound of shuffling.

Asuna blinked, and hesitated again. She could not be sure if she had actually heard something, but she felt that the girl was definitely inside. "Sachi, I..." She trailed off, unsure of exactly what to say. Mere _words_ of sympathy felt lacking and empty. What could you say to someone who had experienced such a loss?

Nothing.

"Sachi, are you alright?" She said with a worried tone. "I- we're all worried, Sachi." She closed her eyes in thought, trying to formulate her next words. "Your friends... Keita, Sasamaru, Tetsuo, and us. We're terribly worried."

There was no response, and Asuna felt her heart drop. She looked helplessly back at Kirito, who looked down. He was no good in something like this. Give him a task, something that he could physically do, and he would accomplish it by the end of the day. But mending the hearts of others... that was not his talent. Despite what the girls believed, he was not someone that connected easily.

Asuna leaned her head against the door, she felt helpless. "We will wait, Sachi. Right outside here, alright? Anytime you're ready... just..." She trailed off.

She backed away from the door slowly, stopping beside Kirito. He patted her on the shoulders, trying to comfort the distraught girl. She looked to be on the verge of tears. "She won't answer..."

"Give her time." He said softly. They stared at the door in silence, each of them wanting to help, but unable to find a way.

It was after staring at the door for a good five minutes later, that Kirito finally decided to try something. "Asuna." He called out slowly. "I want to speak with Sachi alone."

She looked at him with slight surprise and curiosity. "Uhm... okay. But why?" She asked. Asuna trusted him completely, that was without a doubt, but she could not imagine any reason for Kirito to speak with Sachi alone.

"I think there's something she needs to hear... in private." He stated simply, hoping that she wouldn't question him on it. Thankfully, Asuna simply nodded in response.

"Alright... I'll wait over by the stairs." She replied. "I... good luck, Kirito-kun." She said earnestly.

Watching her go with a wistful expression, Kirito silently readied himself for what he was about to say. From what he knew of the current mess, it was that Ducker had sacrificed himself for Sachi. He was the only one who had the right skills in order to detect the trap ahead of time. The fact that he reacted instantly only added to his theory. Ducker had to have made the decision almost instantly... the thought chilled him.

He went up the door, but did not knock. "Sachi." He called out with a steady voice. He waited for a reply, desperately hoping for a sign of life. As he expected, there was none, and he resigned himself to his original plan. "It's me, Kirito." He added.

Taking a few moments to gather himself, he continued. "You probably don't want to hear this from me, but... Ducker wouldn't have wanted this."

Nothing.

"He gave his life for you." He paused, as he definitely heard a sound of movement. A minute passed, before he continued. "You have to live on for his sake... and continue to move on." He told her, hoping to get some sort of reaction.

Silence.

He was worried now. His words were true, but he had wanted some sort of reaction from her, whether it was angry or sad. The fact that she did not even react did not sit well with him. It was even worse than he thought.

"I'm going to go now, Sachi." He said with a resigned tone. As he stepped away from the door, he hesitated. There was still one thing he could say that could possibly coax a reaction from her, but he did not know if he wanted to go down that path. He furrowed his brows in thought, wondering if the girl inside was as distraught as he believed. If she continued this way... he shook his head, it was best not to think of the worst.

A sign of life. That was what they needed.

He moved back in front of the door. "There's a rumour going around, Sachi." He began, his tone was serious. "It's not very credible, but I think it could be worth looking into." This was it, no going back. "It's said that on the eve of Christmas, a unique boss will appear on a certain floor in Aincrad... It is also said to drop an extremely rare item... that will be able to revive a player." He finished.

He waited with a baited breath, for any sign of life from the girl. He had hoped that the rumour would gather a reaction from the girl inside, but it seemed that she was ignoring him. He had been ready to leave when a series of rapid footsteps sounded from inside the room.

The door opened with a bang.

The blue-haired girl was ragged and her eyes were bloodshot, devoid of life. She stared into his eyes with a burning hunger. He was speechless.

"Tell me everything."

* * *

**A/N: Thanks for reading!**

**So, we have an official meeting with ****Sinonon****, but alas, she is quite shy at the moment, bolting after meeting him. She was familiar to Kirito however, which does not bode well for her independance. Kirito is rather persistent when he is properly motivated after all. (Oh, and no, she does not have a Unique Skill.) **

**An argument with Argo, and the recruitment session. I wasn't planning on making Argo clash with Kirito, but Fool's Journey pointed out how brash and assertive she was being last chapter, and I agreed. She tried to do everything her way, without consulting Kirito at first. But of course, they made up, because in the end, she was only looking out for him.**

**Minor tidbit about the recruitment scene, as you might have noticed that I didn't spend time on specifics. I never put the focus on OC's, and rarely show a scene from their perspective. And I probably never will in this story, simply because the canon characters have so much more potential to be explored. The added members are simply to create a more impacting influence with the guild, after all, you can't have Royalty without some subjects. A hint at Silica's growth too btw.**

**Focusing on the Black Cats. Poor Sachi huh? Improved her confidence to extreme levels, only to have it all dissipate in a single moment. She is in quite a worrisome state at the moment, which can only get worse as she pushes herself to the limit, trying to accomplish her goal of redemption. **

**Most of these is for future developments, as I like to introduce interesting ideas/scenes in a more cohesive manner. **

**Tell me if you hate/like the developments, or the way the story seems to be heading. At this rate, the game is approaching the 1 year mark, which is also near the half point of my expected story length. Of course, the most amazing conflicts is still waiting to be written, so look forward to that. **

**As always, I want to thank everyone for reviewing so far, and for following this story. The support has been tremendous. I really didn't expect to continue this story for long. **

**Thanks to my betas (n0mster, and Victory3114) for their hard work. **

**Next Chapter: ****A White Christmas**

_**SAO fic recommendations of the day:**_

_**Swords of the Living Dead by nanaya88**_

_**-Very interesting concept with adding the undead into SAO. The fact that players return to life after being killed is... very cruel. **_

_**-Featuring Sinon and Kirito, which is awesome. **_

_**-Not completely focused on the undead element, as there is still the usual humour associated with the cast.**_


	9. Chapter 9 White Christmas

The skies were as clear as ever.

Yet, a scattering of snow continued to fall, painting the landscape in a beautiful shade of white. The winter season had finally set in, and its effects could be felt all around Aincrad. Some floors remained unaffected, while others were completely changed. Even on the 22nd floor, the effects were noticeable.

The snow fell softly, dusting the surroundings with a thin white layer. Where the snowflakes hit the water, they quickly melted. It was a peaceful kind of weather, that soothed the area in its quiet beauty. It wasn't cold at all, despite the nature of the season. The 22nd floor had always emulated the perfect weather conditions of springtime, and the ensuing winter season did little to change that. The temperature was cool, and even refreshing.

Kirito reached out with an open palm, smiling as he felt the light snow melt on contact with his hands. Though he was sitting on the deck of his house, the snow continued to fall regardless. He noted that they dissipated on contact with any part of the cottage — though the gardens remained affected.

He had always found watching the snowfall relaxing in a way. He remembered the days where he would spend the afternoon in his backyard, just watching as the snow eventually covered the whole garden. His mother and sister would eventually drag him back inside, scolding him for sitting out in the cold. Inevitably, he would give in to their concern, and retreat to the warm kotatsu in the living room — where he could still watch the snowfall.

It was beautiful in its tranquility.

He sat at the very edge of the deck, his legs dangling beneath him. He had forgone his usual coat, in favour of a simple red scarf that he wrapped around his neck. It wasn't needed in this weather, but it had been a gift. He leaned back, and sighed before scanning the area with his eyes. The blue lake below him remained the same, and the surrounding trees, tinged with white, remained as tall as ever.

"Kirito-kun?"

He lazily turned his head around, and located the speaker. She was bunched up in several layers of clothing that made him grin. The girl shivered slightly as she left the warmth of the cottage. Stepping up to his position at the end of the deck, she placed her arms in a scolding manner on her waist. Her pink hair was hidden beneath a white beanie, and her hands were enveloped by a pair of mittens.

"Yo, Liz," He greeted.

She frowned slightly before adjusting her beanie, "Aren't you cold?"

He smiled widely at her question, causing her to sigh.

"Not at all."

He patted the area next to him, and scooted over so the girl could sit beside him. She joined him shortly, shivering slightly as a cool breeze rolled past the two. Lisbeth was not a fan of the cold.

"W-what are you doing out here anyway, Kirito-kun?" She asked with a rattling voice.

Reaching towards his neck, he slowly unravelled the scarf around his neck. "Just thinking a bit..." He answered, taking the moment to wrap the scarf around Lisbeth's neck.

She blushed slightly as he leaned in to loop the cloth around twice, but thanked him as the warmth it provided was simply amazing. If she didn't know any better, she would say that the scarf had a special ability.

For a moment, the two were content in each others' company, simply enjoying the peaceful atmosphere. Lisbeth eventually leaned her head onto his shoulders, which he did not comment on. By now, he was used to the constant physical affections the girls seemed to reserve for him.

"...What are you thinking about?" It was Lisbeth who broke the silence. Her unique dark-pink eyes stared into his own in curiosity.

He hesitated before answering, "My family."

The reply caused her to widen her eyes. "Oh..."

That particular subject had always been considered taboo amongst the players, and as the game continued, the more unspoken it had become. She opened her mouth to issue an apology before he stopped her.

"It's alright," he said, giving her a wry smile. "I don't mind talking about them."

She wasn't that surprised by his answer, considering the little bits of information he had given them over the year. Off-hand remarks and wistful comments allowed the girls to paint a fairly clear picture of his family. She knew both his parents worked a lot, and that he had spent most of his days with his sister. They had all shared little tidbits of their life before the incident, but they knew the most about Kirito.

Lisbeth considered her words. "Do you miss them?" She asked softly.

"Yea..." He knew that she was inferring a deeper meaning. "I miss them more than anything."

She looked pensive at his words. "You know I..." She hesitated. "I have a little brother...he's in elementary school."

He blinked in surprise. Though he knew snippets of her time before SAO, it was mostly restricted to school life.

"It's funny isn't it? You go from constantly complaining about someone one day, and as soon as they're gone... you..." She trailed off.

"You start to miss them more than ever," he finished for her.

She nodded, "I mean, he really is the most annoying brat I know, but... He was really cute sometimes — you know?" Her tone turned wistful. "He always tried to bother me at home and at school — sometimes I wanted to strangle the little bugger."

She recalled how he constantly bugged her at home; hiding the remote, stealing her magazines, and generally refusing to leave her alone. But the moment she lost her temper or scolded him, he would give her the most innocent expression he could muster. She knew that he just wanted to spend time with her, since their house was empty most of the time.

"Liz?"

His voice brought her back down to reality. "...Ah, sorry," she mumbled.

"He sounds cute." He said, causing her to scoff.

She closed her eyes in remembrance. "He would probably like you, Kirito-kun... Mr. Hero."

He chuckled slightly at the jibe. "Then make sure to introduce us."

She had to smile at that. If there was anything constant about Kirito, it was his infallible will to clear the game. Reminiscing over all of the moments she had with her brother... she felt a sudden sadness fall over her. "I wonder if he misses me..."

"I'm sure he misses you dearly," he assured her. "Call it a brother's intuition," he added.

She raised a delicate eyebrow. "What about _your _sister, Kirito-kun?"

He paused, considering her question. "Suguha?"

"Ooh, so that's her name... sounds kinda familiar actually."

His sister... the continued thought of her brought a pain to his chest. "... She would miss me more than I could imagine."

The two of them were close. Closer than what any two siblings should have been. Ever since he could remember, it had always been just him and Suguha. His father was frequently overseas, attending business, while his mother was a workaholic by nature. It had always been the two of them in that big house. He had done his best to be a caring and kind older brother, and before he knew it, Suguha had grown up. Though she was no longer the cute little sister that trailed after him, she had never let go of her trust in him.

"That bad huh?" Lisbeth was tempted to add a 'bro-con' comment, but refrained after seeing his contemplative expression.

"Hopefully she is doing well..." He murmured.

The two fell back into silence, each of them lost in their own thoughts. Lisbeth snuggled closer to his side, despite being rather warm already. Kirito wrapped an arm around her in a familiar gesture. A contemplative mood had settled over them, matching well with the tranquil weather.

"...Kirito-kun?" She said after a while.

"Mmm?"

"Do you think... that we might meet each other..." She paused. "You know..."

"In reality?" He turned his surprised eyes towards her. "Why would you ask that?"

"Well, I mean—"

"Liz," he cut her off with a chiding tone. "Of course we will see each other. After all... we're family, aren't we?"

Her heart soared at his answer. "Ah... okay."

"...Are you alright?"

She didn't answer, and turned her head so that she could bury most of her face into the crook of his neck. The boy had to adjust his hold into a full embrace as she leaned into his chest. He looked down with a bewildered expression, taking care to support her so that the two wouldn't tumble down into the frigid waters.

"Lisbeth?"

She mumbled into his chest, "Shush."

There was something odd about the boy embracing her, she decided. How else could she explain the way he always served to cheer her up. Without a second thought, and seemingly without effort, he could read her like an open book. It annoyed and frustrated her to no end. The boy was simply not fair.

She was falling and she knew it. But she did not care, simply content to live in the moment. In the gentle arms of warmth, and under the skies of blue, she found her peace.

* * *

The creature chattered loudly in anger before rushing towards her. The giant ant mob reared upwards with its large pincers, which cracked loudly as it closed and shut rapidly. It was an unnerving sight to see, especially when you considered just how many of its brethren were behind it. To the party of six, who had been clearing this dungeon for the past few hours however, it was nothing to worry about.

She stared unflinchingly into the mess of creatures approaching her, choosing to ready her shield in front of her. Just in time, as the giant ant threw itself onto her shield. The force of the impact sent her reeling slightly, but she recovered and sent a vicious slash downwards. Her sword glowed blue with power as she activated the sword skill: «Vertical Cleave».

Even as the mob exploded into rapidly vanishing light, she was on the move. Tackling the creature immediately to her left, she opened up with a swift bash of her shield. The unorthodox attack did little but grab the creature's attention.

"Watch out!"

She ignored the shout, her hands immediately going into the motions for another high-leveled sword skill. The creatures she had ignored would have done considerable damage to her preoccupied self, if not for the rest of her members. In an equally swift fashion, they dashed in and took a creature each. Loud shouts and the glowing of sword skills were all that existed for the next few seconds.

It was over just as it began.

She took a ragged breath, leaning against the side of the cave wall. They had been doing this for the better part of two hours already. Despite the relative ease in which they could dispatch the ants, the sheer speed at which they respawned, had given them considerable trouble. They had been to the back of the cave and back, twice. Each journey, the route had been filled to the brim with the numerous ant creatures.

Despite the difficulty, there was no better place to level up in all of Aincrad.

"Sachi?" A concerned voice called from her left.

She looked up blearily at her guild leader, who was looking at her with worry. He handed her a red potion which she took, sipping on it immediately. This particular potion tasted like apple juice, and she felt refreshed as the cool liquid ran down her throat.

"...We should take a break," he said after a moment of consideration.

She was about to protest, when she saw the multitude of eyes that were on her. Her guild mates... the ones who had remained steadfast at her side this whole time, were running ragged. Two of them collapsed at the base of the wall, catching their breath after the quick succession of battles. Yet, despite their fatigue, they still looked at her with worried eyes.

The other two sets of eyes... they gleamed with concern. They were not a part of her guild, but they were just as important to her. She cherished the friends she had in this world, and were thankful for their continued support. The two girls were not as tired as the rest, but she could tell that they were beginning to get there. As she met their eyes, she had to look away. All of that concern was unsettling.

"Alright," she agreed at last.

Asuna and Silica shared a small smile, before making their way over to her side. They had been helping the Black Cats for a while now, and each of them made it a point to spend as much time as they could by Sachi's side. They were making steady progress with the girl, as she no longer seemed continually sullen, but her ferocious determination was still very worrisome.

Sachi paid little attention to the small talk going on around her. The real part of her continued to fight, refusing to rest.

_Wait a little while longer... Ducker._

* * *

"Really?!"

"...Yea, why?"

"..."

"Liz...?"

"I knew I've seen you before!"

"Wha—"

"You were on the big screen!"

"...Oh."

"Ahaha, oh I can't believe this, Kirito-kun."

"..."

"Aw, are you blushing?"

"No!"

Argo watched the two of them bicker from a distance, leaning in the doorway with a fond smile on her face. She found the sight to be particularly cute, as Lisbeth continued to poke and tease, while Kirito tried to fend off her touches. She was glad that they now had their own house, as moments like these were simply too precious. Now, to commemorate this memory with a picture...

"Argo-chan!" A happy voice called from the couch.

Hastily putting away the recording crystal, she turned her attention back to the pair, "Y-yo! Liz-chan, Ki-bou."

Making her way over to the two of them, she pointedly ignored Kirito's suspicious expression, and sat down to his left. Draping an errant arm around his neck, she leaned into his side.

"So so, what were you both talking about?" She locked gazes with a suddenly smirking Lisbeth.

"Well~" She began, only to be interrupted by Kirito.

"Hey!"

The two giggled at his indignant expression. "Are you that embarrassed Kirito-kun? Maybe I shouldn't..."

"Hmm, well now I have to know." Argo smiled mischievously.

"We were just talking about how we got into the beta, and Kirito-kun here— Mmfmmr!"

Argo raised a delicate eyebrow as Kirito muffled Lisbeth with a hand pressed against her mouth. He looked at her with a deadpan expression, "Nothing."

Sensing that Lisbeth was on the verge of hitting him, Kirito removed his hand from her mouth. She sputtered as the offending appendage was taken away, and glared dangerously at him. "That was mean!"

"Yea yea..." He knew that she wasn't serious, judging by her sudden pout.

Argo took a moment to think. "Oh, you mean how he won that tournament for «GBA»?"

They both looked at her with amazement. "H-how did you know that?" He asked with a shocked expression.

She smirked in return, "Fufufu~ I remember everything Ki-bou."

The tone sent a shiver down his spine. Sighing, he sunk back into the couch as the girls laughed. The entire event was particularly embarrassing for him. When he had watched the event on TV, a few weeks after, he had been astounded to see how absurd the editors had made him seem. They skipped over the moments where he had stumbled or struggled on, and simply chained together a montage of moments where he dominated. The result was an entire session of him showing off his 'awesomeness', as his sister had put it.

He waited for the two of them to settle down, which took a rather long time. They continued to tease him about the show, which he pointedly tried to ignore. He couldn't help the slight blush on his face however.

After the two had settled down, he asked his question. "So... did you confirm it?" The question was directed at the whiskered girl to his left.

"The rumour, right?" She paused, before continuing. "It's as confirmed as it can get, I would say. NPCs on every floor seem to say the same thing."

The NPCs of Aincrad, while smarter than more traditional AI, were usually restricted to a list of set dialogue. Although the list was quite extensive in some cases, it was a well known fact that they did not change. The fact that a rumour appeared stemming from them indicated an event.

"At any rate, the only question left is the location."

Kirito hummed in agreement, "About that, I think I may have a good idea where it is."

"You mean...?" Seeing his nod, Argo took on a contemplative expression. "Hmm, it is a definite possibility."

Lisbeth looked back and forth between the two in confusion. "What are you two talking about?"

Smiling at her befuddled expression, Kirito elaborated, "The Christmas rumour, about the special event that is supposed to happen on Christmas Eve."

"You mean the one that Sachi..." She trailed off.

The three of them fell into a sudden silence, each of them thinking about the troubled girl. Although she had improved tremendously since the first few days, the girl was decidedly troubled. She did little but train, and despite anything they tried, she would not relent. Finally, they had decided to help her rather than try and hinder her.

"They've been at it since this morning." He noted with a sigh. All of them had been helping the Black Cats train, mostly as a precaution and to keep an eye on Sachi. Two members at a time would help them out, maxing the number of members allowed for a party.

It was fine since it was nearing the holidays once more and no one was in the mood to clear the current floor. A year into the game, with steady and considerable progress, they all felt that they deserved a break.

"I'm worried..." Lisbeth murmured. The last time she had partied with the Black Cats, Sachi had been almost unsettling in her determination. The blue-haired girl had refused to stop until the entire dungeon had been cleared.

They shared a troubled look between the three of them. Each of them had their own thoughts about the girl, but they all knew the same thing.

She was in a dangerous state of mind.

"We'll just have to do our best." He said, receiving two nods in return.

Inwardly, he was deeply troubled with the direction that Sachi had taken. Although she had gotten out of her depressive trance, the way she chose to deal with Ducker's death was simply unhealthy. She slept very little, ate even less, and was seemingly hell-bent on becoming as strong as possible before the Christmas event.

Mostly, he was worried about what would happen when the girl discovered the true reality of the revival item. He had no illusions about that particular aspect of the rumour. Even if it were real, he knew that it would not work in this death game called Sword Art Online. When you died in this game... your body would soon follow.

You could not revive what didn't exist anymore.

* * *

He could feel that the scene before him was tense, even from his distance. There appeared to be two major groups opposing each other, both sides looked to be on the verge of erupting into violence. On one side, a player with red hair and a bandanna shouted loudly, gesturing wildly around them. The one opposing him — a helmeted player with heavy armour — gazed on with impassiveness, and stood his ground. The multitude of players that stood behind him indicated a guild.

A guild that everyone recognized.

Stepping up closer, he heard the trail end of the argument. It looked like Klein had been stopping the opposing guild members from barging into the cave. But the head of this particular leveling party appeared resolute on going ahead.

"Look, it's been 10 minutes past the deadline," He gestured to the players behind him. "And, we have been waiting for half an hour already."

Klein appeared frustrated as he gestured once again to the cave entrance behind him. "And I'm telling you! There is a party in there already!"

The helmeted player shrugged. "It's not our problem if they can't respect the rules."

Klein was about to shout once more when he finally noticed Kirito's presence. "Kirito!"

His name caused every single player to turn their eyes towards him. He sighed as he walked up to the gathered groups. This particular area had always been troublesome for the higher-leveled players, as it was a highly valued leveling area. There was no where else in Aincrad that was as fruitful as this cave.

Situated on the 48th floor of Aincrad, the «Grand Caverns» was a prime dungeon for farming. The spawn rate was simply absurd, as was the quantity of the monsters. Adding towards that, the monsters themselves were particularly easy to take down, with the only concern being their numbers. Beyond that, the dungeon itself seemed to be spaced out in a circular format, with interlocking corridors that all connected to larger chambers. There was no way to get lost in this particular dungeon, as all you had to do was move forward.

The only problem that came with a dungeon like this was the fact that it was highly sought after. In the beginning, there had been several fights over who got the rights to the dungeons, and tension had been high. To resolve the issue, everyone had agreed to share the dungeon, allocating time slots to those that wanted a turn. There were still some lingering issues with the arrangement, but for the most part it was self governed, and the party that lined up next could go.

"Klein," he greeted, before turning his gaze towards the other player. The helmeted player looked notably less confident as he took in the sight of the famed guild leader. His party members appeared to share the same expression, showing none of their previous irritation or anger.

"Hmm, you're Lucien, aren't you?" Seeing the hesitant nod, he continued. "What seems to be the trouble here? I wouldn't have thought that the highly vaunted «Divine Dragon Alliance» would be starting fights like this."

The leader of the opposing party looked slightly abashed at his words. He hesitated before respectfully speaking his mind. "There's a party inside that's not respecting the rules, sir."

Kirito had to raise an eyebrow at his respectful tone. It was rather rare to see a DDA member that was not ruled by his pride. "How so?" He asked promptly.

"They... they've been in there past the 1 hour mark." Murmurs of agreement came from his fellow members. "We have actually made several arrangements with the other parties for today."

Kirito crossed his arms, and frowned. There was _some _truth in their words, as the general expectation was that nobody was allowed to hog the highly valued dungeon. But he doubted that they were being truthful with the reservations.

Klein spoke up from his left, "That's not true. We have been here for the past few hours and we never saw another party."

The other group bristled in annoyance. "What are you trying to say?" He asked angrily.

Seeing the budding confrontation, Kirito gestured with his hands in a placating manner, "Hold on." Once the two broke off their glares, he continued, "You know that reservations are only valid if you have someone hold your spot for you?" He asked.

Lucien did not reply to that, looking away. It seemed that he had not expected much opposition coming here, as most of the time, the other guilds would move aside for the more respected guild. Kirito himself did not like to use his reputation for such purposes, and insisted on waiting in line just like everyone else.

"And besides, it seems like «Fuurinkazen» are up next, so even if the other party is exceeding their time limit, it's up to them to decided what to do next." At his chastising tone, the DDA members all looked away. "Need I also remind you that entering an occupied dungeon is a violation of the rules?"

In a spacious dungeon that was highly valued for its spawn rate, it would have been acceptable to have multiple parties go in at once. However, the major issue with that was that the dungeon tended to scale itself with the number of players involved. Increased levels of aggression, spawn rate, and general difficulty were direct effects of having more players in the dungeons. The added risk was considered unnecessary, and so the restriction of having one party inside at once was set.

The helmeted player argued with himself internally, before looking up at Kirito. To his surprise, he gave him a nod of respect. "You are right. Sorry about this."

Gesturing for his members to follow, he left the area immediately. Everyone watched them go with a surprised expression, as they had expected much more opposition from the headstrong guild.

Klein whistled lightly. "Not bad at all Kirito, that was pretty impressive."

His friends all nodded in agreement, each of them awed by the ease in which he had diffused the situation.

"Hah..." He rubbed the back of his neck. "Comes with practice I guess..." He mumbled.

He had grown used to settling disputes and conflicts within the clearers, as many of them considered him to be an authority figure. He did not mind, as each of the conflicts were resolved timely and without issue most of the time. His main problems usually came from the DDA members, and some of the KoB members, who disliked his involvement.

"It was a good thing I contacted you huh? We didn't know how long we could have held those idiots at bay," Klein remarked, a hand rubbing at his chin in thought.

"Thanks a lot, Klein," He smiled at the redhead. "And you guys too," He added to the rest of the Furinkazen members. They nodded and smiled in reply, each of them holding him in high regard.

Klein's expression turned serious, "But Kirito... they've been in there for about 3 hours already."

Kirito sighed in reply. Sachi had promised to only train for a few hours today, as she had been going nonstop since earlier in the week. When they did not have access to this dungeon, she would go off on her own, just training on various mobs in the surrounding area. She would not stop, being completely restless when they took their breaks.

They were very lucky to have the help of Klein and his guild, who had volunteered to reserve as much time as they could for the Black Cats. After hearing about the situation, each of them had immediately pledged to help. They were very grateful towards the «Fuurinkazen», as they took up watch over the weaker guild.

It was with both his and Kleins' connections that they were able to secure as much time as they did inside the dungeon, with numerous parties giving way to the Black Cats. With the furious pace of the training, he wagered that the Black Cats were almost ready to tackle the front lines by themselves.

The only problem was Sachi and Keita.

Sachi herself was in a downward spiral, heading towards self-destruction. Keita... he seemed to blame himself more than ever, and he did not protest any of Sachi's decisions. Instead, the leader tried his best to help Sachi in whatever direction she chose, putting her well-being above his own. The guilt in his eyes was clear as day, and Kirito did not know how to snap him out of it.

Thankfully the other two members of the guild were less restless, but still dedicated to their remaining friends. They tried their best to keep up, despite having a hard time following the two. Their determination was admirable, but at the same time, it was all very sad.

All of this dedication and resolve for a purpose that Kirito couldn't help but think would, in the end, be worthless. However, the truth of the situation would completely shatter their spirit, therefore he kept his opinion to himself.

He only hoped that they realized the truth on their own soon enough.

"Nothing to do but to wait..." He murmured.

He sat down on a nearby boulder, watching the entrance of the cave, waiting. Though he wasn't worried about the group in particular, knowing that Asuna and Silica could pick up any slack, he couldn't help but feel that Sachi was going to collapse soon. Sasamaru had told him that he had not seen Sachi asleep since they had started training, and her inn room was mostly left empty. It was very disheartening to hear.

Klein sat down next to him, yawning before stretching widely. "What?" He raised an eyebrow at the look Kirito gave him. "I've been here since this morning you know!"

Kirito simply grinned, shaking his head lightly. "I still can't believe how diligent you've been this week."

"Oi!" He protested. "I'm a guild leader too, 'ya know?" He added, causing Kirito to chuckle.

They shared a moment of peaceful silence, each of them content with just staring at the entrance of the cave. To the side, the rest of his guild members lingered, each of them conversing or practicing sword skills to pass the time. He had to give Klein credit where it was due, as the seemingly relaxed guild could be very reliable at times. He knew it first hand, seeing them in action during boss fights.

"Kirito," Klein hesitated for a moment. "That Sachi girl..."

Kirito did not reply, waiting for him to finish.

"...Something's off about her," he muttered.

He hummed in agreement, "Can't really blame her..."

"I know, but still, with the way she is going, I can't help but be worried," he said in a concerned voice. "I... I've seen that kind of look before. And it's not good, Kirito."

"That look?" He asked curiously. Sachi's eyes did seem unfocused, and empty at times, but those moments were very few in between. For the most part, she looked restless and agitated.

Klein nodded solemnly, before continuing, "One of my coworkers. The week before he... killed himself... his eyes were like that."

His eyes widened at the startling revelation. "S-suicide?"

He felt his heart beat irregularly as he thought back towards Sachi's behavior. The girl continually distanced herself from the others, often ignoring all attempts at conversing. Whenever she was left alone, she tended to disappear somewhere, leaving them with the task of having to search for her. And when they did find her, she was usually in the process of butchering a mob with cold viciousness.

"...Maybe, but it's still very worrisome, Kirito," Klein elaborated, crossing his arms in thought. "You might want to talk to her."

Kirito looked down sadly, shaking his head slightly, "I've tried. I doubt I can get through to her if Keita and the others couldn't."

Klein shook his head. "I disagree, you're selling yourself short." At Kirito's questioning look, he continued, "You have a way of getting through to people, Kirito. I've seen it in action— heck, you've even used it on me. And I'm sure all of us can back me up on this, but when you speak, everyone tends to listen."

He considered Klein's words silently. They had a measure of truth behind them, and he felt oddly conflicted. He did want to help Sachi as much as he could, but simply talking to her... he felt that it would only push her away.

He was shaken from any further thought as a steady stream of players emerged from the cave entrance. Every single one of them appeared ragged and tired as they trudged outside. Immediately rising to his feet, he made his way over to the two girls that were trailing behind the group.

Sharing a nod with Keita, he watched on as the Black Cats moved to the side, conversing with the «Fuurinkazen» members. The girls caught sight of him and perked up as he came closer to them. He noted that Sachi broke away from the group, leaning against a nearby tree. Even from here, he could tell that she was in an anxious mood.

"Kirito-kun~" They greeted in unison, smiling at him.

He returned their smiles, and they moved up towards him, taking positions beside him almost instinctively.

"How was it?" He asked, after the two had taken a moment to rest, simply leaning against him.

Silica mumbled something too soft to hear. The girl leaned into his side, and he patted her head fondly. Her ever-present dragon settled down on his shoulder, and seemed to be in the process of falling asleep there.

"Tiring..." Asuna mumbled from his right. The lithe rapier user looked to be on the verge of collapse as she rested her head against his shoulders. Her fatigue was understandable, as she was the one that constantly volunteered to help the Black Cats, and had been doing so for the past week in succession.

Kirito looked between the girls fondly, before looking towards where Sachi was resting. The girl's eyes were closed, and she had sat down at the base of the tree. If it wasn't for the steady motions of her clenching and unclenching fist, he would have said that the girl was asleep.

"How was Sachi?" He asked quietly. Asuna stiffened a bit by his side, but answered promptly.

"The same...I-I'm worried Kirito-kun." She raised her head to peer into his own eyes. "She doesn't talk to us except in the middle of battle, and when she does... it's always so _hollow_."

They both stared at Sachi as she sat, browsing through her menu without purpose. Those eyes again... the ones that Klein spoke of. He could see what he meant now that he was looking for it. The gloomy orbs that spoke of nothingness.

He sighed. "We'll try to talk to her later, all of us. For now... you think you could make some lunch?"

She stood up straight, peering at him with a suddenly narrowed eye, "For everyone?"

"...Yes?" He asked nervously.

Crossing her arms, she huffed, and began tapping her feet in a rather unsettling manner. The sight almost caused him to backtrack in reflex. "Do you honestly expect me to cook for _everyone_?"

He considered his reply carefully, as having an angry Asuna was definitely not something he wanted to experience a second time. "A-ah, well, you are the best chef in Aincrad," he praised, and to his relief she blushed lightly.

"And, I promise to help," he added, which appeared to satisfy the volatile girl. She uncrossed her arms, and beamed at him.

"Okay!"

_Scary..._

* * *

It was later on in the afternoon that the large group of players finally arrived at his cottage home. After all of the players had gotten their rest and Klein's guild members had a short run at the dungeon, he had invited them over for lunch. All of them were thankful, and exuberant at the chance of tasting Asuna's cooking. Her reputation seemed to have slipped out of the guild somehow.

At the door, they were greeted by the twins, and ushered inside. The majority of the players blinked and stared around in awe at the luxurious surroundings. Though the Black Cats had been here once or twice, Klein and his guildmates hadn't.

Klein whistled loudly as he took in the plush furnishings and the high ceilings of the rooms. "Holy crap, Kirito... this...this is..." He stuttered, gesturing around him. "Not fair!"

Kirito simply grinned. "I know right?"

"Guh!" Klein clutched at his heart dramatically. "Not even denying it..." He muttered.

Everyone looked at him with amusement, before following Kirito's lead, which led them to the wide sitting area, a lofty room with tons of furnishings available.

"How much was this place by the way?" Klein asked curiously. He sat down on one of the comfortable looking armchairs and looked around in wonder.

Kirito held up three fingers, much to Klein's confusion.

"Three... hundred thousand?" He guessed offhandedly.

Kirito raised an expectant eyebrow, and shook his head.

"...Three million?" He guessed again, with a trembling voice. That amount of money was simply insane for him to imagine, considering his entire guild budget was slightly under that.

"Each," Kirito added, shrugging at Klein's look of disbelief.

Klein spluttered in protest, "Each?! How on earth... that's..." He was dazed from just imagining such an incredible amount of money.

"Argo fronted most of the money," he amended, after watching Klein mutter to himself. Without Argo's considerable contribution, he doubted they would have been able to afford such a house. They were a small guild after all, and most of their farming was done for the sake of leveling up rather than items. That wasn't to say they weren't well off, as they had a consistent streak of luck in finding rare items. What they couldn't use, was sold to the other clearers, which brought in a considerable amount of profit.

"Talking about me~?" A familiar voice singsonged. Before he knew it, a familiar pair of arms was wrapped around his neck. The gesture was so familiar to him by now, that he didn't even react. "Oh and what do we have here? Hm, 'Mr. 23 and single'?" She teased, causing Klein to splutter in anger.

Everyone watched on in amusement as Argo began to harass Klein with well-aimed remarks, all the while hiding behind Kirito. Though Klein was shouting, trying to salvage his reputation, there was no real heat behind his words.

There was a warm sense of familiarity in the air.

After everyone had settled down, there was a lull in conversation as Kirito stood up from his position on the couch. Seeing Argo's questioning look, he gestured in the direction of the kitchen.

"Promised Asuna, that I would help out," he explained, and made towards the kitchen when he suddenly paused. Looking back at Argo, he brought up his trade window. "Why don't you see if anyone wants some of the new equipment. We need to sell all of this stuff anyway."

After accepting the multitude of high-leveled items, Argo smirked and saluted Kirito, "Roger that, leader~"

Shaking his head in resigned amusement, he headed out of the room. Knowing that particular look on Argo's face, he knew that the poor Fuurinkazen members were in for a treat. There was no better merchant in SAO than the whiskered girl in that room.

He spotted Asuna in the kitchen, but did not disturb her as she was going back and forth between the cooking accessories. Though cooking was a pretty trivialized feature in SAO, Asuna liked to be meticulous in her ways. He couldn't complain however, as her results spoke for themselves.

She spotted him from the corner of her eyes, and smiled briefly, before pointing to the kitchen counter. "Go arrange those," she commanded.

He smiled wryly. "Yes, ma'am."

There was a myriad of items on the counter, most of them high-level cooking ingredients. He began to arrange them into their own neat piles, knowing what Asuna liked. Although you did not have to materialize the ingredients in order to cook, she liked to visualize the cooking process.

When he was finished, he turned back to observing the lithe girl dancing around the kitchen, setting up several of the appliances at once. He watched on fondly as she hummed happily, and began to gather the ingredients for a stew. She set the ingredients into the pot, and covered it with the lid. 'Tapping' the surface of the stove twice, she immediately set her cooking preferences; a custom option that only a professional like her would use, and stood back as she waited for the counter to count down. The only thing bothersome about the cooking process was probably the time it took to cook the various meals. For the stew it would only be about 5 minutes, but the delicious scent of the meal was causing him to salivate.

She was beginning to prepare the pork roast, when she caught his stare. Pausing, she looked over herself self-consciously, as the way he was smiling at her caused her to blush. "W-what?"

His smile widened. "Nothing."

She huffed, looking away in embarrassment, before continuing her preparations. The way she was preparing the various spices and herbs was awe-inspiring to see. There was a grace to her movements, and the speed at which she was moving was simply too fast for him to follow. It was after she had finished and put the roast in the oven, that he began to speak.

"How's Sachi?" He asked quietly.

Asuna looked down sadly at the reminder of her friend. "She's with Silica-chan, and Liz-chan. I think they're taking a bath."

He sighed, crossing his arms in thought. Without a second person to look after her, Sachi tended to wander off. The only reason she bothered to listen to them most of the time was because she knew that training with them would be faster than what she could accomplish alone. But that did not mean she was here by her own desire...

There was no other choice in his mind, he had to do something, anything, in order to prevent her from falling even further.

Even if she hated him for it.

* * *

The lunch was amazing as always. Asuna lived up to her given reputation, and by the end of it, everyone had wanted seconds. During the meal, everyone conversed happily with one another, and the general atmosphere had been light. Three guilds of varying difference, but all working towards the same goal.

It had been fun, watching as jokes were thrown around, and laughs were had at the usual expense of Klein. It was a rather rare sight to see, as the mood around Aincrad had been stifling as of late. With the coming Christmas, many were reminded of just how long they'd been stuck inside this death game.

13 Months. The thought of being away from their friends and loved ones for just over a year... it was unsettling.

Kirito felt that the mood was much better than what it had been the previous year. Whereas the previous winter was filled with misery and hopelessness, this one was tame in comparison. In fact, many of the players could be seen actually celebrating the holiday this year. Decorations and music changes managed to draw out a great number of the players, and they could be seen mulling around the giant Christmas tree in the center of the Starting City.

Everyone had the right to be celebrating, as the progress being shown by the clearers were astounding in its own right. The front lines were currently set up on the 50th floor, and even now, there were some dedicated players that continued to scout and roam the floor. 50 floors in just slightly over a year... that kind of progress was heartening to see.

With the results that they were showing, many optimistic players had even speculated that they would be out in another year. Kirito felt that they were simply being _too_ optimistic however, as that was not how a game like SAO progressed. Typical MMOs would boast of a linear progression system, and SAO followed that particular format to some extent. Besides the unique abilities that certain bosses had, the general difficulties of the bosses tended to scale linearly. The only oddity came from the 25th floor boss, who had been on another level of difficulty compared to the previous ones. The result of that particular boss had resulted in «The Army» pulling off their clearing parties, as the losses they had suffered were simply too much.

He had come to the same conclusion as many of the other players, judging by the fact that the 26th floor boss was a cakewalk compared to its predecessor. Every boss fight that was a quarter of the way up would be incredibly difficult. Even now, he still had some trepidations about the upcoming fight, wondering if it would be possible to succeed without any casualties.

Though the casualty rate remained at an all time low, there was still the odd fatality that nobody could do anything about. It had been disheartening in many ways, to see just how many of the players had become desensitized to death. Sometimes they wouldn't even notice the death of a player until the very end of the fight.

The 50th floor boss, the 75th floor boss... and finally the 100th floor boss. They would be the only obstacles standing in their way. If those were the only difficulties, then Kirito would have been relieved. Sadly enough, their progress was being impeded. Whether by the occasional disputes or the ongoing pking, it seemed that the idea of everyone working together in harmony was but a dream.

To further impede the optimistic outlook, Kirito knew that there might be an added difficulty curve as they approached the final floors. Kayaba, when asked about the difficulty of the game, had said that 'the greatest challenges awaited those that neared the end', which he took as a sign that things would not be easy on the final stretch. He only hoped that the challenges proved to be surmountable... assuming that the front lines stayed together that long.

A series of soft-sounding footsteps echoed from behind him. He turned his head slightly to find the blue-haired player that stepped out to join him on the balcony. Sachi was as expressionless as ever, choosing to stand a good few feet away from him. He did not call out to her immediately, giving her space. He knew that she wasn't in the mood to talk.

Probably, she had become unsettled by the cheerful atmosphere of the group. She knew better than to try and leave the house on her own, as that would only drag the others out to accompany her. Distancing, and secluding herself... it was as if she was punishing herself.

A daunting silence hung over them.

Though the sun had not yet set, it was covered by the heavy clouds brought on by the season. The surrounding area was bathed in a dull light, and the snow continued to fall as steadily as ever. But the gentle breeze that had been present in the morning was gone, and in its place was a vicious gale.

It was Sachi that broke the silence, startling him immensely. "Kirito-san."

Her voice was a whisper, barely heard over the wind. He turned his body sideways, facing her with slight hesitance. She continued to look over the balcony with a vacant look in her eyes, but her hands were gripping the railing tightly.

"...Yes?" He tried to hide his nervousness under the anticipation. It had been the first time he heard the girl speak since the moment at the inn.

"How do you do it?" Her voice was hollow, but there was a pleading tone underneath.

He blinked, failing to comprehend her question. _How do I do what?_ There wasn't anything specific that came to mind.

"...Fighting. Staying on the front lines all of this time... don't you ever get scared?" Bitterness tinged her expression, but before he could formulate an answer, she continued. "Risking your life, risking _their_ lives...what's the point?"

"Sachi I—"

She cut him off, "It's not worth it," he met her helpless stare head on, before she continued. "There's no point. Why are we even risking our lives for this sick game? We _shouldn't _be _here_, Kirito-san... we... we're just kids!"

He stared on mutely as something seemed to have snapped within the quiet girl. She was angry, helpless, and pleading all at the same time.

"It was supposed to be _fun_..." she whispered, looking away from him. "A game we could all play together. An _adventure_, he called it." Her eyes were clenched shut as she struggled with her next words. "This was never a game... everyone thought that if we tried hard enough, we could _clear_ this game— _fight_ our way to the top... That was foolish of us... so incredibly idiotic. Even me, I thought— I thought that we could win. I truly believed that all of us together... could help. With enough training, and effort, we could win! We could escape this death game!"

Her fists were clenched by her side, trembling from the pressure she was exerting on them. He had no doubt that if this were the real world, her hands would be bleeding. All of a sudden, her anger vanished.

"We were wrong... _you_ were wrong," she hugged her arms tightly around herself, before raising her head. "It took his death for me to see that..."

"Sachi..." He felt helpless as he watched her.

"I was the one who killed him, you know?" Her revelation caused him to stumble back in shock.

"...What?" He whispered.

She gazed out onto the scenery, watching as the surrounding landscape was pelted by heavy snow. There was no sign of the peaceful tranquility from before.

"We were doing so well, all of us. Clearing a brand new dungeon... it was exciting. Still, we took all the precautions and watched our HP carefully— like you taught us. It was a breeze, almost too easy..." she trailed off, suddenly lost in the memory. "But then... it was just there, Kirito-san. A door, just like many of the others we passed through, but this one phased into existence... right in front of me. Of course, I took a look, and found a treasure chest. I was so excited— so happy, that I didn't think, and... and I went for it."

Kirito immediately pieced together what had happened from her retelling, and couldn't help the feeling of horror rising from rising within him. He knew what she was referring to, as that particular dungeon feature was well-known amongst the beta testers. Any MMO veteran would have thought twice about opening a chest that suddenly appeared out of nowhere... but Sachi was not a veteran.

She was just a girl in the wrong place, at the wrong time.

"...He grabbed me, and before I knew it, I was pushed out... and the door shut." There were tears streaming down her eyes. "H-how was I supposed to know? I... I didn't know..."

"You couldn't have..." he suddenly interjected, his voice full of conviction. "There was no way you could have expected that to happen— Sachi, it's not your fault—"

"It is!" She shouted, eyes suddenly burning. "Ducker knew! H-he ran straight for me— and... and he _died_... for _me._" There was desperation in her expression, and her tone was broken.

"...It should have been me."

There was nothing he could say to that... she was right. It should have been her that ended up trapped inside. The only person in their party that could have known about the trap would be Ducker; since he was the one who had that particular skillset.

But in the end, he chose Sachi.

"Maybe," he agreed softly, causing her to look away, "but Sachi... that was his choice. He gave his life for you because... he couldn't live with himself any other way."

It was the sort of conviction that he himself lived with every day. He would not sit idly while a loved one perished in front of him. Everything and anything in his power would be given to prevent it.

Sachi stilled, her head trying to wrap around his words. Somewhere inside, she knew that he was speaking the truth... but she refused to admit it.

Shaking her head, she refuted him, "He should have never had to make that choice in the first place... All of us should never have to make that choice." Her tone was resolute, trying to convey her sudden conviction.

He sighed softly, considering his words carefully. She was talking to him, which was a good sign, but she seemed to have given up on the game entirely. It was understandable from her perspective, as all of their efforts had amounted to nothing but a single unforgivable loss. She was regretting the idea of leaving beyond the first floor.

"You're right," he began, getting her immediate attention, "none of us should have to make that choice. We should be at home... celebrating the holidays, laughing with our friends and family. We should be living our life, free from any danger... but Sachi," he called her, staring into her eyes with unmatched resolve. "This is our reality now, and there is nothing we can do to change that, _except _to work towards our only chance at escape. Don't you see? If you give up— if we all gave up... _he _wins."

She was contemplating his words, and he continued.

"Every death in this game... it can all be traced back to one person: Kayaba Akihiko. The one who put us all in this death game, the one who _murdered_ over three thousand players. For what? For _nothing," _Kirito intoned grimly, he had to pause before continuing, as he found himself trying to keep his anger down. "Every floor we clear, every boss we defeat...it's one more step closer to _that_ _man_, because I have no doubt in my mind, that he is somewhere in this world, and when I find him..."

She was staring at him with complete, undivided attention. Somewhere along the way, he was no longer speaking for her benefit.

"When _we_ find him, Sachi," he amended, noting the fire in her eyes. "We will make him pay. For the thousands that have died under his actions... and for the ones that will continue to fall. So long as I still stand, Sachi, _that_ is my goal."

He stepped closer to her, glad that she did not move away from him. Taking her hands in his, he clasped them within. Her hands were cold, far colder than what should have been possible.

"...You asked me earlier, how I continue to fight," he began softly, choosing his words carefully. "I fight because there is no other way. To stop fighting would mean that I have given up. To never see my family and friends ever again and that's not something that I can live with." He could see that she was considering his words carefully, judging by her pensive expression. "And Sachi... I'm not fighting for myself anymore. Asuna, Lisbeth, Silica, Argo, Rosy and Lily, everyone who believes in me. That's why I will never stop, because there are people who have put their trust in me... including you."

She tilted her head upwards, meeting his eyes. Her eyes were watery as she considered the truth in his words. Most importantly however, was the hidden conviction in her eyes, just underneath the surface.

"That's why you must live on... not just for yourself, but for everyone who continues to believe in you. Move forward, Sachi, but never forget your purpose."

For the first time in weeks, Sachi felt at peace. All of the weight and pressure was lifted from her shoulders. Though the pain in her heart continued to throb at a steady pace, it was dulled by the newfound resolve she had gathered. Staring into the eyes of the strongest person she knew, she found herself.

Once more. She would give it her best, not for her own sake, but for her friends.

For Ducker.

* * *

He eyed the clock indicator with a careful eye, before turning towards the rest of the gathered players. The Black Cats were suited up and ready, all of them going through a last-minute inventory check; making sure they had all of the proper potions ready for the upcoming fight. Although their combined levels should have made any fight on this particular floor — even a boss event — rather trivial, there was no sense in going in unprepared.

"Are you sure about this?" He asked the blue-haired girl by his side.

She turned her head, closing her inventory screen, before giving him a firm nod. There was a fierce determination in her eyes, a look that was shared by each of her guild mates. The Black Cats were resolute in their goal.

"Still... I really think we should go in with you," he opined, frowning as she shook her head. "You know this event was likely structured for a full raid group?"

As with any true boss in SAO, they were made to be tackled by a full group of 48 players. To that effect, the only reason the front lines were doing so well was because of how overleveled the average clearer was in comparison to the floor level. Bosses were generally created to be a challenge, and not something that could be done in a single try — at least, without casualties. When you were over ten levels ahead of the boss however, the risk tended to become drastically lower.

That did not mean there wasn't any danger — far from it. Bosses that had special abilities, or unique gimmicks could wreak havoc from just the surprise alone. There really was no reason to tackle a boss such as this with just a single party.

Eyeing the players that would be taking part in this battle, he couldn't help but be extra worried for the two girls near the back. Asuna and Silica had insisted on their presence in the fight, despite Sachi's protests. Her initial idea had been to tackle the Christmas boss with just her and her remaining guild mates. That idea had been benched the moment Kirito heard of it however, as it was simply too risky.

With Asuna and Silica, he supposed that they would not be in any danger. Asuna herself was a very capable leader, and could direct them efficiently. If anything unexpected happened, he knew that the girl was more than capable of preventing the worst. Silica herself was an amazing asset to have in a party. Her considerable STR stats, coupled with some of the most resilient armour in the game, made her one of the strongest tanks in SAO. That was not all, as the girl had a very unique companion by her side. Pina, the «Feathery Dragon», was a priceless asset to any party, considering that she had a percentage-based heal that was faster than any potion.

They were in good hands.

Still, Kirito could not help but be worried. He would not force anything however, as he knew that Sachi needed to do this more than anything. The Black Cats needed to do this... for closure.

"They'll be fine Kirito-kun," Lisbeth replied, coming up from behind him. "After all, they are using _my_ creations.

Everyone smiled at her proud expression. Lisbeth had been hard at work the past few nights, gathering the right materials in order to create the best weapons she could in such short notice.

"Alright..." He trailed off, giving everyone a once over. "Then, I guess you guys should go. There's only about 5 minutes left."

Sachi blinked, looking at her clock in surprise, jumping slightly once she read the time, she gestured for her party to gather.

"Good luck," he said to her, receiving a slight smile in return. He nodded to each of the Black Cats as they walked past him. All three of them looked notably lighter now that Sachi was in a much better state. Keita gave him a thankful look as he went past towards the final warp point.

"Be safe," he told Asuna and Silica. There was a part of him that wanted to stop the two of them in their tracks, and take their place. But he knew that would only make things worse. They asked him to trust them, and as reluctant as he was, he obeyed. It was only fair.

"We will," Asuna replied, giving him a brief hug and a wave before heading into the warp point.

Silica hesitated for a moment before repeating the action, hugging him around the waist. He smiled, and hugged her back, making sure to give Pina a pat on the head.

"Be careful," He remarked, receiving a muffled confirmation in return. She broke off from the hug, and went inside, joining the others.

"Just us now, huh?" Lisbeth commented, coming up beside him.

"Yea..." He scanned his eyes around sharply, as this particular area was simply too quiet. A forest of dead trees and white snow. No signs of life, or rather, signs of anything.

He sighed, leaning against a nearby tree. They had taken several precautions along the way when traveling to this particular area. Argo had been running interference for days, spreading false rumours here and there that misled all of the players that were searching for the rumoured tree. As such, he didn't really need to worry about any potential ambush.

Yet, he couldn't shake the feeling that he was being watched.

"Kirito-kun?" Lisbeth asked curiously.

He remained silent, gesturing for her to quiet, before continuing with his previous actions. Activating the «Scan» skill took a small moment of preparation, but soon he had his awareness extended, enveloping the surroundings. He was about to cancel the skill when he felt a single presence.

"Lisbeth—"

He was interrupted as several figures came out of the trees, where the entrance warp point was located. Immediately, he recognized the familiar dull grey and blue armour of the «Divine Dragon Alliance». Standing up straight, his hands moved automatically to the sword that was sheathed on his back. The entire situation was unsettling, especially when he gazed into the eyes of the person that was leading them.

Sansa had a fierce scowl on his face as he stepped out slightly ahead of his gathered members. A quick scan of their numbers caused Kirito's heart to sink. A full raid group... that was simply beyond even his ability.

"Prince," he called out imperiously. "What a surprise to see you here."

Kirito remained passive, hands going back down. There was no need to force a fight here, especially with these odds.

"Sansa," he greeted in the same tone, getting a sneer in return. "I could say the same thing... but then I'd be lying. How did you find us?"

Lisbeth silently moved behind him, her presence was reassuring.

"Hah, we knew what would happen the moment all of those rumours started popping up. Really, did you think no one would realize who they all came from?" He scoffed, crossing his arms. "It was easy to send a couple of our best trackers to spy on you."

He remained silent, considering his words. Though the rumours could obviously never be traced back towards Argo, it didn't take a genius to connect the dots as to who orchestrated such a wide variety of misleading rumours. The trackers... they must have been assigned to one of the others, as his searching skill was maxed. Either that, or the trackers had enough skill to constantly remain at the edge of his scan. That thought was particularly unsettling.

"It's not what you think, Sansa," he tried in a reasoning tone, "this wasn't for us."

"Oh?" He asked humorously. "That really doesn't matter now does it, _Kirito_?"

The mocking tone in his voice caused many of the surrounding players to shift nervously. Lisbeth in particular almost made to move towards the player, but Kirito rested a hand on her shoulder to stop her. Many of the DDA members looked back and forth between the two players, unsure of how to proceed. Though they were all loyal to their guild, challenging the _«_Royal Swords» head on was simply unheard of.

The player in front of them was their leader during a boss clear after all.

Sansa looked down at them, his eyes told Kirito all he needed to know. It appeared that this particular player held his grudges. Though he couldn't really blame the fellow, as the humiliation he had suffered under Asuna had been particularly brutal. His standings among the general population had suffered immensely after that event. Not to mention the loss of the incredibly rare **[Boss Weapon]**.

"I'm going to be lenient with you two, not that you deserve it." His mocking tone continued. "Leave immediately and tell whoever is inside to do so as well."

Lisbeth almost snarled in her rage, "Or what?! We were here first!"

"Heh, so what? I don't remember any particular rules pertaining this event," he retorted in a chiding tone. "Remember missy, this isn't the front lines anymore, you guys have no authority here."

"Screw that! How about some common decency?" She asked furiously. If this were the front lines, the dispute would be settled in some form or another, and definitely in a fair fashion. The co-leader before them however, did not believe in fair play.

He sneered, taking the moment to draw his choice of weaponry; a large two-handed axe that gleamed silver. The aggressive action startled the two, and they promptly drew their own weapons in reply. It wasn't a smart move in hindsight, as the rest of the DDA members drew their weapons as well.

Things were spiraling out of control.

"Face it, Prince, you're outnumbered. Either leave or else we will go through by force," Sansa commanded, his posture aggressive.

Kirito eyed the gathered members carefully. Though Sansa was not alone in his aggressive stance, he noted that a good half of the group still looked confused and uncertain. The DDA was a clearing guild made up of MMO veterans, and although they were no strangers to aggressive maneuvers... a direct threat was another thing entirely.

"_Kirito-kun,"_ Lisbeth whispered from his side, _"what do we do?"_

He didn't know. If push came to shove, he knew that the two could probably hold them off for a short while, as neither side was really looking to _kill_ the other. The problem was the sheer number of players they were facing. There was nothing they could do to stop the majority of them from running past them entirely.

Before he could answer, another DDA member stepped up, coming to stop by Sansa's side. Kirito recognized the player... it was Lucien, the one who had tried to skip past Klein's guild the other day. He remembered the player because he had been respectful and had a modicum of tact. Judging by the scene in front of him, he had not been wrong in his assessment.

They were exchanging harsh whispers between the two of them, and Kirito had to raise an eyebrow as Lucien seemed to be on equal footing. Either there was something wrong with the current DDA leadership, or Lucien was a highly respected individual. He guessed that it must be the latter, as the rest of the DDA members looked rightfully confused, unsure of which side to take.

"_Liz,"_ he whispered back, taking care not to draw attention to the two of them. _"Did you contact Argo?" _

"_Yes," _she confirmed, keeping her gaze straight ahead at the arguing pair. _"It was a quick message, but she should have gotten it." _

He felt relief wash over him. If Argo had gotten the message then reinforcements would be on their way shortly. He only hoped that they could stall long enough for that to happen.

"_Get ready to step inside, Liz."_ He whispered, knowing that she would understand. If the worst happened, then they would grab everyone and leave with **[Teleport Crystals]**. Fighting a boss with a single party was one thing, but trying to do so with constant conflict was another.

"Enough!" The armoured co-leader shouted, breaking off from his building argument with his fellow guild member.

He sent the opposing member a stern glare, before motioning for the gathered players around him. They obeyed, coming up next to him, although some of them were reluctant. Seeing that Lucien had grudgingly backed off, he turned around to face the two members of the swords once more.

"I will ask you two one last time, either get out of the way or—"

There was a wave of commotion that rippled through the gathered precession, causing him to stop his tirade. Seeing the stunned looks on Asuna and Lisbeths' faces, he turned around swiftly. His eyes blinked rapidly, his expression turning to shock, as he gazed upon the multitude of new arrivals.

Klein had a cocky grin on his face, and his katana was held loosely against his shoulders. Behind him was his entire guild, each of them prepared with their own weapons out. The sight of the friendly guild caused Lisbeth to sigh in relief.

"Yo!" The red-head greeted cheerfully, his tone decidedly out of place given the heavy atmosphere. "Now what do we have here?"

Sansa, having gotten over his shock, stiffened and readied himself. His posture told the gathered players all they needed to know. He would not be backing down.

"Nothing that concerns the «Fuurinkazen»." He answered with a sneer. There was no sign of nervousness in his posture or expression, but one could easily tell he was on edge judging by the harsh grip he had on his weapon.

"Oh? That's not what I see here, DDA-san," Klein spoke almost mockingly, giving the gathered players a brief scan. "It seems like a scene of bullying to me, why, I would have expected much better from such a guild like yours."

There was a ripple of nervous shifting among the gathered DDA players. Klein's guild was well-known for their kindly members, to the point where they tended to get along with every other guild. Most of them felt that backing off would be a wise decision at this point, as forcing anything and causing a rift between two respected guilds on the front lines was anything but wise.

Sansa seemed to have other ideas however, as he continued to glare steadily at the 'samurai'. "I suggest you leave right now, you samurai wannabe. Just take a look around, you are outnumbered."

"Ouch," Klein said with a toneless voice, his mood suddenly turning serious. Meeting Kirito's eyes, they shared a silent exchange. "Sansa, you're not thinking straight," he pointed out to the angered player, "what you are doing here... how do you think this will end?"

A moment of hesitation, before the helmeted player replied, "In our complete victory of course."

Klein scoffed, eyeing the player with a disbelieving eye. "Right, and how many of you lot have even dueled before?" His question was addressed to the rest of the DDA members, and judging by their suddenly nervous looks, he was spot on.

Taking a step forward, Sansa looked almost eager in his posture. Staring down at Klein, he gestured again at his gathered guild members, each of which reluctantly followed his lead. Though Klein was right in his assessment, their guild had faced numerous amounts of humanoid mobs by this point, fighting the «Fuurinkazen» members with their formations should still work to their advantage. Plus the fact that Sansa was a firm believer in how much numbers had over quality. It was almost 4:1 after all.

Klein, seeing the aggressive gesture, signalled in a similar manor to his guild mates. They responded in surprisingly swift fashion, fanning out in a curved semi-circle that focused on defense.

At the back, Kirito shared a look with Lisbeth, before turning their attention back to the building confrontation. He wasn't sure of what to do, but given the quickly dissolving situation, they would have to fight it out. Klein's guild was skilled in their own way, so he had no doubt that they would be able to hold the players off for a good while. If he and Lisbeth attacked from the open back... then the chaos and confusion should be enough for them to have a fighting chance.

The most important thing was distracting them from the boss warp point. Nodding, and reaffirming his decision, he turned to Lisbeth. "We will rush from behind, go for stuns and crippling blows, and Lisbeth... be careful."

Seeing her firm nod, they were about to rush in when several figures emerged from the tree line once more.

Black... tinged with white, he blinked at the familiar looking designs and colours. Immediately, his mind clicked, and he recognized the newcomers that were swiftly filling in the gaps in the «Fuurinkazen's» position. When the new players had settled down, gazing back at the DDA players with defiance, a final figure emerged.

Her uniform was tinged with a bright royal gold, and Kirito felt a wave of relief rise from within. The familiar auburn-haired girl, with her trademark whiskers, was smirking in their general direction. From their perspective, they could see the entire conflict and he was surprised by how even the numbers appeared.

"Hah, what took you so long Argo?" Klein remarked in a teasing tone, though it was laced with a notable amount of relief.

"Sorry sorry~ Got held up a bit." The girl turned her smirk onto Sansa. "But now that we are here... Hmmm, how to proceed?"

To his credit, the DDA co-leader did not back down immediately, though his previous aggressive posture was gone. Victory was no longer assured, maybe even impossible given the odds. Though the seemingly new recruits of the «Royal Swords» were an unknown entity, he could not underestimate them. After all, the «Royal Swords» were considered the strongest for a reason. If their main party had been the ones opposing him, he would have probably backed off.

The tension in the area could be cut with a knife. Though the DDA members were disciplined, even they could not steady themselves against the calmer opposition. The majority of them had thought that the rumoured recruits of the RS had been just that, a rumour. Seeing them in reality however, quickly put that notion to rest. And if the calm and relaxed expressions on their faces were any indication, then they had been highly trained.

"Ki-bou!" Argo shouted over the gathered precession, causing every head to turn in his direction. "How should we do this?"

Understanding her plan the moment she had called him out, he did his best to play the part. Straightening up, he scanned the DDA members with an appraising eye, doing his best to appear confident. Inwardly, he had to smile at how many of them cowered underneath his stare.

"Mmm," he crossed his arms, appearing as if he was debating with himself. "They _were _ready to attack us just a while ago."

His accusing tone caused many of them to fall into panic, all signs of fight leaving from their posture.

"Really?" Argo asked humorously. Scanning her comrades in arms, she offered them a smile. "Should we return the favour?"

Klein smirked in understanding, looking around with a similar gaze, "I think we should."

"W-wait!" A voice called from within the DDA groups.

The stocky player from before, who had argued with Sansa, suddenly removed his helmet, revealing his stark grey hair and blue eyes. He ignored Klein and Argo, in favour of looking to his direction, where he tried to plead his case.

"This whole thing was under Sansa's command, our other leaders do not know anything," he revealed with a steady voice.

"Lucien, you—" Sansa's outburst was shushed rather forcibly as several of his members dragged him down, and away from the blue-haired player.

Kirito had to raise an eyebrow at the scene, inwardly pleased with how quickly Sansa had fallen.

"We will formally apologize, Kirito-sama, once Ryuken hears of this...I... I don't think there's a need for either of our guilds to fall into conflict with one another."

Argo sent him a curious glance, to which he returned with a faint smile. It seemed that he wouldn't have to do much posturing after all.

"Alright," he agreed promptly, surprising the DDA members. "You may leave."

Lucien looked shocked, but did not press his curiosity, and instead gave him a short bow. He shouted a series of sharp orders to the gathered players, and they immediately hastened to obey. They had to drag Sansa out of the area kicking and screaming, but after a few short moments, the area was finally clear of any traces of the DDA.

It was finally over.

Everyone in the vicinity let out a sigh of relief, especially the newer members of the «Royal Swords». Each and every single one of them sagged in notable relief, finally letting go of their calm facade. They had reason to be relieved after all, as they were definitely not ready for a fight of this magnitude.

It had been a bluff, and he was glad that it worked, considering what might have happened if it failed. The new recruits were a steady progress, being just strong enough to tackle the floors around 30 or so. Fighting the clearers who were on the edges of level 60 however... was simply an impossibility.

He himself, had only reached level 75 just the other day, and the gap between him and a recruit was almost insurmountable. It was just how a game like SAO worked.

Seeing that everyone had gathered around, he was about to join a laughing trio of Klein, Lisbeth and Argo, before he was suddenly reminded of something.

Jogging off towards the treeline, he made sure to pass by the trio first. "Watch the entrance carefully," he told them, before sprinting towards the tree line.

"W-wait! Where are you going?"

At his speed, the trees were a blur, and he took care in avoiding the numerous branches in his way. Quickly arriving at the warp point, he took it, and arrived just outside of the initial entrance. The large dead fir tree served as the landmark to the dungeon entrance, but he paid the surroundings no mind as he quickly pulled up his scan skill again.

Multiple players reacted to the scan, with the majority of them coming from the large group of DDA members that were heading towards the main city. The other signal however...

He sprinted off, towards the south, and tried his best to keep a mental image of the direction in his head. The area was far denser than inside the dungeon, and he had to adjust his route several times, almost losing his bearing. But he remained steadfast, and eventually reached an area of the forest that had taller trees.

It was here that he saw her figure. She was running away at a steady pace, but not quite as harrowed as he was. A short dash and he was within shouting distance.

"Wait!"

Surprisingly, the figure stopped.

She was wearing the familiar white cloak that he had seen on her the first time. It blended in well with the surroundings, and given the quickening snowfall, he had to strain his eyes to see her with clarity.

He stopped just a few meters away from the player, taking care not to alarm her in any way. She did not give any indication that she was worried, as she slowly turned around. The familiar violet orbs stared into his own.

Silence fell over them.

"I... " He trailed off, suddenly unsure of what to say. There were many questions running through his head. Why had she been watching them over the week? Why was she at the event, hidden? The most important question had to be... why she was so utterly alone.

She chose to speak for him. "... The rumour... it was false all along wasn't it?" She asked in a soft voice, that surprisingly carried over the wind.

Her question confused him. _She was there for the rumour? Then..._ "The revival item?"

The way she was, with her hood covering the majority of her features, Kirito could not make out much of her features. But the sense of familiarity that he had gotten when he had first met her eyes was still there.

She nodded slowly.

"...The way its been rumoured to work, that's simply not possible in this game," he answered steadily, seeing no reason to lie.

Her reply was almost a whisper, "I see..."

She turned around stiffly, before beginning her trek once more.

"Hey!" He called out, getting her to stop. "Who _are _you?" He asked

Something within him wanted to help the girl before him. But that was incredibly odd, considering he knew nothing about her, or even if she needed his help. His instincts however, continued to scream at him. He wondered where and how he recognized this girl, because she was not someone easily forgettable.

She did not turn around, merely turning her head slightly to the left. It was a few tense moments before she spoke again.

"Nobody important..._Prince_. Don't follow me."

He watched her leave with a contemplative expression on his face. A wraith of white, within a world of snow. For the first time he could remember... he felt cold.

* * *

**A/N: Thanks for reading.**

******A lot of dialogue in this chapter, and hopefully I have improved since my first chapters. **

**Not much to say about this chapter except that it's to pave the way for the Black Cats to eventually be on the front lines. Similar to how the Fuurinkazen have been; a very steady ally for the RS. **

**Just a few things to note, the revival item is like it was in canon, so no more Ducker unfortunately. I probably won't use it as a plot point, as I feel that it is too... contrived to use. **

**Another interesting to note is Sachi's development. How Kirito snapped her out of her funk is pretty interesting I would say. He gave her a renewed purpose, and that purpose just happens to be Kayaba. Going to be fun to see how she reacts to the eventual unveiling.****  
**

**Thanks to my beta, nomster, for the continued help, and to Victory3114 for looking over the chapter. **

**Next Chapter: ?**

**-Will either focus on the 50th floor fight and all of the resulting drama**

**-Or focus on Sinon**

**-Or both**

**See you next time.**


	10. Chapter 10 Fracture

A scattering of players stood in semi-organized groups before him. The more distinguished players wore their uniforms with pride, each of them standing behind their chosen leaders. Standing a good distance from the larger guilds, were the rest of the clearers. Those who remained solo, and those that belonged to smaller guilds. Despite the variance of allegiances, he could say without a doubt, that these were the finest players that Aincrad could offer.

The strongest clearers.

As he walked up the hill to the group, they stilled their conversations in favour of glancing in his direction. Flanking him on either side was Asuna and Argo, both of whom looked decidedly at home there. Slightly behind them were Silica and Lisbeth, who despite not exuding the calm and assertive aura of their guild members, still looked relaxed in the face of so much attention. He couldn't have asked for a finer party.

He exchanged silent glances and the slight nod every now and then with the various clearers that he knew on a personal level. It only made sense, since these were the people that he had constantly risked his life with over the past year. These were the ones that cleared the front lines, explored the dungeons, and finally put themselves up for the eventual boss clear. They were the front lines, the ones who were slowly carving their way to the top.

This was the area right before the entrance to the boss labyrinth of the 50th floor. At the crest of a large rolling hill, was the rather bland entrance. A decrepit arcing doorway of an old tomb led towards one of the most elaborate dungeons discovered so far. The labyrinth was constantly changing, and the cleaners had discovered that depending on the time of day, the maze's whole layout changed itself to match. It had taken considerable effort, but now they were ready to tackle the floor boss. As was customary however, they would have a strategy meeting beforehand.

He went past the groups to stand at the very top of the hill, beside the entrance of the dungeon. There at the top, were the familiar figures of Heathcliff and Ryuken, and their chosen 'lieutenants': Diabel and Malik. The three top guilds of Aincrad, and the three leaders of the front lines. Though he had a more influential role as the 'official' leader, he knew that it was at most a formality. Leadership was split into three factions, with Kirito barely coming out on top. Behind him, Heathcliff had considerable influence over the remainder of the divide, and with the DDA coming in last simply by virtue of having such a large guild.

"Glad you could join us." Heathcliff greeted as he finished traversing the steep hill.

Giving the red-clad knight a nod, he exchanged greetings with Diabel and Ryuken before turning to face the gathered players. Standing at the top of the hill, he could see over the heads of every player in the vicinity. This was a full gathering, unlike the previous ones that only required those that wanted to volunteer for the boss fight. Each and every one of the players that constituted the front lines were gathered here. It was a number that barely bordered on two hundred, yet despite the seemingly low number, it was a heartening sight to see.

As was custom, it was Heathcliff who started the meeting. Stepping forward, the movement immediately hushing the murmuring, and giving them a charismatic smile, the knight began the meeting.

"Welcome, to the 50th boss strategization meeting. I hope that you are all well and in good health."

A variety of nods and acknowledgements came back from the gathered players, each of them paying rapt attention to the man before them. Heathcliff's mere presence commanded their attention.

"I'm glad," he said with a faint smile, scanning over the assembly of players with something akin to pride. "We will need everything we have in order to tackle this particular boss. This is something that we cannot possibly take lightly. Our biggest challenge yet, this is the daunting obstacle before us."

Some nervous mutters broke out among the crowd, a few of them shifted all knew the significance of this floor. After the disastrous boss fight on the 25th floor, all of them knew what was waiting in store for them. A boss battle more dangerous than any other, a battle that could very well prove to be fatal to some.

"But we will not back down. We cannot back down. Not after all of the effort spent coming this far," Heathcliff paused, letting his words sink in, before continuing in a firm tone. "We are halfway there. Our progress so far has been steady and unfaltering. And just because this boss is stronger than any we have previously faced, that does not mean it is unbeatable. This boss will fall just like any other, and we will be one step closer to our goal... our freedom." He was glad to see that most of the assembled players seemed to have found their conviction, judging by their resolute expressions.

"So, what do you say?"

A resounding roar of approval met his question.

Kirito almost shook his head in disbelief at how well Heathcliff seemed to be able to sway others with just his words alone. It was hardly a notable speech, but somehow the way he expressed himself and the way he talked was more effective than any emotional drivel that he could think of.

Heathcliff merely smiled lightly before signalling for silence. "Now, I will move on to the planning. Our scouts have bravely entered the boss room earlier this week, and we have them to thank for this information." He gestured to a small group of KoB players behind him, and the gathered players applauded lightly for the three scouts. Scouting the boss room of _this_ floor was something that many had believed to be a fool's errand.

"The good news is that the boss seems to be simply an upgraded version of the stone statues found inside of the labyrinth, although his form is that of a six-armed buddha."

The particular mob that Heathcliff mentioned was the mini-bosses that were found usually at every intersection of the ever-changing labyrinth. Statues of various models, warriors and knights alike, came to life and would immediately charge towards any players in sight. These bosses were slow and clunky, but they had immense defensive stats along with incredibly powerful swings that could send you flying if they connected. A favoured tactic against these mini-bosses was simply to have someone occupy the boss's attention while the rest attacked from behind, switching roles whenever the boss changed its target. As long as the players kept dodging each swing, taking down the mini-bosses had been rather trivial.

But there was something interesting about their mechanics that Kirito had noticed. Each of these stone statues came to life with slow and blocky steps. Their initial speed and movements were almost as if they were moving in slow motion, yet as the battle progressed, their movements gradually quickened. Many players had theorized that they needed time to 'warm-up', so-to-speak.

A floor boss with such a mechanic did not bode well in his mind.

"The bad news however, is that we know nothing more. Our scouts managed to determine that the boss mechanics are either identical or similar to that of the stone statues, since he slowly came to life when they approached his throne. They couldn't gather anymore information though they did notice that the boss wielded six scimitars."

Kirito had to frown at that. The implications were enormous, as most of the humanoid bosses they had faced so far showed exemplary weapon skills. They were not restricted to the sword skills that the players used, and sometimes had custom abilities tailored to their specialties. The dark elf boss on the 10th floor had shown them that. That particular boss had showcased twin-dagger sword skills that had astounded them with the sheer speed behind each skill.

The players seemed to share his trepidation, as many of them had grimaces on their faces.

Heathcliff sensed their nervousness right away. "There is no doubt in my mind that this will be the most difficult challenge we have faced so far. To that end, we have to pool together our very best. That means that only _the_ strongest players will participate in this battle."

There was some confused shuffling as the players tried to understand what Heathcliff was getting at.

"Not just levels, we will have to consider your experience, your skills and talents, as well as your equipment. Everything will be considered. To put it simply, we are not sparing any efforts in this battle, we can't afford to." The red knight elaborated with a firm tone.

His announcement was met with mixed results, but the majority of the feedback was excitement. A common misconception among the general populace was that the players in the top guilds were always better than those who were not. This was untrue, as despite the resources offered by the guilds, you had to factor in the distribution of the rewards too. Guild members tended to pay a guild fee, ranging from a static fee to a percentage after each battle. Of course, that meant that the leaders and vice-leaders of the top guilds tended to be much better equipped than the rest of the clearers. With some notable exceptions.

Kirito noted with interest, how the smaller guilds were animatedly talking with one another, each of them focusing their attention on one or two players within their group. He knew that several of the players in that particular group would be on equal standing with several of the more equipped DDA and KoB members. Klein himself would be on equal level with Diabel or Sansa even.

The last group that caught his interest were the ones that hung around at the edges of the gathering. They were staring around with interest, but did not join in the discussion. These were the solo players. The ones that had consistently refused any offers to join a guild, preferring to help out in their own way. Some of them filled in the blanks during boss fights, but the majority of them put their efforts into clearing the floor.

He had a few contacts within that small category of players, but from what he knew, there were many players in that category that could hold their own against many of the more respectable guild members.

Not everyone shared the same excitement however, as the three leaders of the DDA were sharing heated words with one another. A common sight it seemed these days. Their guild members looked at each other warily, none of them knowing what to feel about the sight.

Heathcliff signalled for silence, and the players ended their excited chattering. "As always, you do not have to volunteer. But for those of you who are willing to step up to the plate, please let Diabel know. We will have a week to prepare for this battle, and the final members should be finalized several days beforehand. Now, back to the business at hand, there are several tactics that we will be using that have proven to be highly effective and..."

* * *

He dodged the incoming blow almost absently, the large stone fist hitting nothing but air as he gracefully stepped to the left. The speed at which this particular mob moved made dodging almost unnecessary, as you could almost walk out of the path of incoming attacks. The only issue you ran into while facing these «Stone Sentry» mobs were the fact that they tended to be numerous in nature while being extremely tanky.

Even at his exorbitantly high level of 76, it took him close to a minute to take down just one of these mobs. These were definitely on the higher end of the difficulty spectrum when it came to monsters, being closer to a mini-boss than not. It made sense, as these sentries were guarding the previously secret entrance to the boss dungeon.

With a final thrust into the gap between the monster's stone plates, the mob finally dispersed into a scattering of white light, and accompanying its death was the sound of broken glass. Idly closing the reward menu indicating a nice sum of Col and an assortment of materials, he turned his attention to the flurry of activity around him.

His girls had improved immensely since their first meeting.

As if sensing his thoughts, Silica suddenly moved forward with a shield bash before ducking underneath a swing and coming out behind the large golem. Her pet dragon let out a cry before launching a beam of frost towards the golem. The youngest clearer took the opening given by her pet, and executed an «Aurum Surge», the 6-hit one-handed sword skill caused the golem to groan in pain before shifting its attention back to the small girl.

He watched on with pride as the girl brought up her pristine crystal shield and blocked the incoming blow unflinchingly. Nobody had expected the small girl to come this far, but she had proven herself up to the challenge. At level 70, the girl could be considered the strongest shield user in the game, besides Heathcliff of course. Something that no one would have ever suspected to be a possibility a year ago.

Silica was not alone in her growth however, as Lisbeth, Asuna, and Argo had come a long way as well. The three grew into their role in a way that left him simply amazed.

With Lisbeth being at a respectable level 72, and having maxed her «Two-Handed War Hammer» skill, the part-time smith was one of the strongest clearers in the game in terms of pure strength. Indeed, when Lisbeth unleashed all of her cooldowns, her damage was simply absurd, and that was not even mentioning the amount of stuns and interruptions that accompanied her skills. She had grown considerably into her role as their back-up, knowing exactly when to come in at the first sign of trouble. There was something incredibly warming about swinging a hammer hard enough to send the largest of mobs flying away from your teammates.

Asuna and Argo, being at level 74 and 73 respectively had grown into something else entirely. Though in the beginning they had been satisfied with letting him lead, and resigned themselves to covering his back, now they refused to. Instead, both of them wanted to be there at the front, right beside him. He didn't know when it had happened, but gradually, the two had integrated themselves in such a way that they complimented his fighting. He had always felt a link with Asuna during battle, and the two of them worked incredibly well as a team.

Argo had been a surprise. From the start, the girl's method of fighting had been more inclined to a solo role, rather than in a party. But as they had all changed, so had she. Now, instead of tackling a mob by herself, she did her best to assist those around her, matching her movements to her guild mates. And she did her job incredibly well, having an uncanny ability to read and anticipate their moves.

With the two girls by his side, he did not need to worry about anything save for his front. Asuna was his right hand and Argo was his left, and together, the three of them moved as one.

Truly, there was no better team he could ask for.

While he was reminiscing about their growth, the girls had almost finished off their own golems. The field had contained five of the monsters, and they had split up in order to tackle them individually. There was no worrying anymore, as each of them trusted the others' ability. And if they needed help, they could always count on their party.

Argo finished off her golem with an almost furious display of savagery, her claw swipes were a blur as they tore apart the monster. Taking a moment to assess her drops, as was custom to her, she closed the reward menu before spying his standing form.

She sauntered over to his side with a happy expression, a stark contrast to her earlier display, and he merely smiled as she promptly latched onto his arm. It was almost second nature at this point.

"Ki-bou~" she cooed, eyes closed in happiness as she rubbed her cheeks against his shoulders.

"Argo," he greeted back, smiling down affectionately. "Good work on that mob, very smooth."

She blinked at his praise, before breaking into a wide grin. "Compliments will get you everywhere, Kiri-bou."

They shared a quiet laugh before turning their attention to the rest of their team. The others seemed to have slightly more trouble with their golems, still getting used to the rhythm of the mob.

"So, so, what were you thinking about?" Argo prodded from his side. "You were thinking pretty deeply, even during battle."

Trust Argo to pick up on the littlest of things, and Kirito found himself surprised once more at her perception. Shaking his head, he smiled absently before answering her question.

"Just thinking back... you've all grown so much."

Argo blinked, tilting her head to the side in question. "How so?"

"Well, for one, Silica is no longer running away from mobs," he pointed out with a grin.

Argo giggled, before adding, "I see what you mean, but she still scares so easily."

She remembered how Silica reverted back to a child's mentality every time they encountered a bug-type mob. It was hilariously cute, watching her cling to the back of Kirito or Asuna in fear. She was steadily gaining progress in that regard, but for now, they all knew bugs were the poor girl's main weakness.

"Mmhm, but you know... all of you have grown immensely," Kirito remarked, closing his eyes in thought. "Asuna, Lisbeth, Silica... you."

She jolted a bit, peering up at him curiously. "Me?"

"Of course, you've grown so much since then. Almost docile these days." He affirmed, reaching out a hand to ruffle her hair, the gesture surprising and annoying her.

Pouting as her hair was left in disarray, she huffed. "I don't know what you mean."

"Oh? Don't pretend like you haven't changed, Argo. "

She crossed her arms petulantly. "Hmph."

He simply laughed, noting the light blush on her cheeks. It was very rare to fluster the lithe girl before him, as she was usually the one who did all the teasing. He found the sight of her embarrassed face rather cute, and was about to continue his teasing when he noted something at the edge of his vision.

Argo noticed it too, and she tensed slightly by his side. They both relaxed when they identified the two figures that were walking up to them.

They were both equipped with the familiar red and white coated armour that had been a trademark of their guild since the beginning. Though it wouldn't have mattered, as their respective faces were quite distinctive already. After all, who wouldn't recognize the leader and sub-leader of one of the strongest guilds in Aincrad.

Heathcliff walked with an imposing gait, despite the fact that he was as casual as can be given the circumstances. It was rare to see the leader of the knights out from the setting of a meeting or a fight. It was even rarer to see him out on the field, which had caused much confusion as many wondered how he raised his levels.

"Kirito-san," he greeted as soon as he crested the hill.

"Heathcliff." Kirito returned, before sharing a nod with the blue-haired sub-leader to the left of the man. Diabel looked oddly out of place, shuffling his feet nervously.

There was a brief pause, before Heathcliff continued. "There's a matter regarding the upcoming boss fight that I wish to speak to you about."

Kirito blinked, suddenly unsure. Though he had spoken — probably more than anyone — to Heathcliff many times, it was rare that the other man would seek him out. Deciding to put aside his sudden apprehension, he gave him an obliging nod.

"Go ahead," he prompted, ignoring the sight of Argo staring a hole into Diabel.

"Very well, as you know, the upcoming fight is going to be unlike anything we've ever faced before. Not even I can afford to take this lightly."

Kirito frowned, wondering where he was going with this. "I know, we have to proceed carefully."

Heathcliff nodded. "It's about that very reason that I came to speak to you. As you know, I am among the top shield-users within the clearers, and one of the best suited for the tanking role."

"Of course, no one doubts your abilities."

The red knight gave him a faint smile before continuing. "It won't be enough in this fight I'm afraid, if the scouts were correct in their assessment then not even I can deal with this boss alone."

Heathcliff's role in boss fights was critical. He was at the forefront of every engagement, immediately sensing the most prominent points of battle, then stepping in to take the blows when he could. His defensive prowess was second to none, and he could generally take several blows in quick succession whereas other would-be tanks would simply crumble under the assault. In Aincrad, there wasn't a better shield-user than the man before them.

"I am going to need help."

"...You need more shield-users." Kirito surmised reluctantly.

Seeing Heathcliff's nod, he turned towards Argo, both of them having reached the same conclusion. Judging by the look on Argo's face, she was not happy with the implications at all. In fact, she looked quite upset.

"Absolutely not." Argo bit out firmly, her glare silencing Diabel's incoming protests rather easily.

Before either side could further their discussion, they were suddenly made aware of the three girls coming from their right, having finished dispatching their respective mobs. The three remaining girls of the «Royal Swords» were looking rightly confused as they came upon the four.

"What's going on?" Asuna asked stiffly, not liking the looks on Kirito and Argos' faces.

Heathcliff gave the newcomers a calm look of acknowledgement, before elaborating. "Matters regarding the upcoming boss fight, Asuna-san."

She frowned at the answer, looking at Kirito expectantly. He shook his head lightly, and the girls relaxed somewhat.

"You know my stance on such things, Heathcliff." Kirito stated firmly. "It's not that I don't understand where you're coming from, but we're not willing to risk her."

Heathcliff did not falter. "But Kirito-san, surely you trust in my abilities to at least keep her safe?"

"It's not about that, it's the simple fact that she would not be with us."

"With her in the defensive group, our chances will be much higher. Do you not trust in her?"

Kirito narrowed his eyes, before replying in an angered voice. "It's not trust that is the issue, it's the needless amount of added risk."

"That does not ignore the fact that she is the next best option we have," Heathcliff remarked in an unphased tone. "I'm afraid that the success of the raid will depend much on her and a few others."

The four girls, and the blue-haired vice-leader looked back and forth at the verbal exchange with wide eyes. This was the most conflict they had seen coming from either of the leaders in the last 50 floors or so. Usually, Heathcliff and Kirito were on the same page on things, which was why the influence of the DDA were minimal at best.

"What are you guys talking about?" The confused voice of Silica suddenly broke into the budding argument.

The two leaders turned to her abruptly, each of them holding in their words at the sight of her. Seeing that Kirito was holding his tongue for the time being, as if trying to prevent her from joining into the debate, Heathcliff took the initiative.

"We were talking about you, Silica-san."

Silica blinked wide eyes in an adorably cute manner, head tilted to the side instinctively. Coupled with the sleepy-eyed dragon atop her head, the girl did not look the part of a strong clearer.

"What?" She asked with notable confusion.

Before Kirito could chime in, Heathcliff took the lead. "For the upcoming boss fight, the group that will be taking the lead will have to be the most resilient players. That means you, Silica-san, after all, you are the most experienced shield-user after me."

Silica's mouth dropped open in shock, and she promptly sputtered out a denial. "W-what? That can't be right, Heathcliff-san, surely there are much better players than me?"

Kirito sighed, crossing his arms in a rather serious manner. He did not like where this was going at all.

"You underestimate yourself, Silica-san. Aside from me and you, the next closest would be Ryuken." Heathcliff answered with a small smile.

His words were true, and Kirito knew it. Though he did not know the levels of Heathcliff or Ryuken, he knew that they could not be much higher than Silica — especially the leader of the DDA, who only leveled in a large raid group. No one could say for sure what Heathcliff's level was, but Kirito would guess that it was either around his level, or a bit above. Though Heathcliff was rarely seen leveling, the sheer efficiency he displayed told them all that they needed to know.

"You don't have to go." Kirito stated, startling Silica from her sudden introspection. "There are many other shield-users that can fit into that party."

They might not be on the same level as Silica, but with help from the others in things like equipment, then they could prove to be effective. He knew he was being selfish, trying to withhold the smaller girl from going, but he couldn't help it. The thought of putting Silica in any amount of extra risk was something he couldn't stomach.

Heathcliff frowned, showing a rare display of emotion, and was about to refute Kirito's statement when a different voice chimed in first.

"I will do it."

Everyone in the clearing looked towards the youngest clearer in definite surprise and shock. Though she wilted under the stares, she refused to back down— they could see it in her eyes, she wanted to prove herself.

"If I'm the best suited for the party, then I will volunteer, Heathcliff-san." She added, looking away from the worried stares from her guild.

"Silica, you—"

"Kirito-kun, I want to do this... please." She looked at him with a pleading expression, and he found himself struck by the sight.

With a heavy sigh, he turned to look towards the two KoB members.

"Alright."

* * *

The world was covered in snow.

From as far as she could see, the whole landscape was painted in white. Falling from the skies, was a light snowfall that seemed to pick up and rise as she trekked through the snow towards her destination. In a world like this, one could not tell the time of day at all, nor could they even distinguish any landmarks.

Just the way she liked it.

There were many places that a player in Aincrad could have called home, and most of them were situated in a city or village. But she did not like the crowds of people, or those NPCs that were so lifelike in their appearance, yet so fake on the inside. She did not like the constant stares... judging and wondering.

Ever since the first day of the game, it seemed that she attracted stares wherever she went. It had been a curse that transferred over from reality, and she hated it. She wished that everyone would have just left her alone. Just left her alone in that inn room to rot, if only she did not meet her that day, they would have—

She suddenly shook her head, trying to erase the memory that was being dragged up again. It was futile... her sins continued to haunt her no matter where she was. Even in a world of virtual reality, it appeared that she was destined for misfortune.

Onwards into the snow-covered forest she went, her footsteps soft and her figure unflinching despite the cold weather. She was cloaked in white, blending into her surroundings almost as if she was a part of it. Except for the weapon that was sheathed across her back diagonally, which gleamed in the light, shining a pristine red, despite the haze of snowfall.

The path she took seemed to be aimless. Her destination had no marker or indicator in any game map. In a forest that covered half of the floor, few players strayed far from the roads. Especially when the monsters of this floor liked to ambush any would-be hunters in large packs. No, her path was engraved into her mind, having taken the same route for several months now.

Wrapped up in a world of white, where everything was shrouded and covered. Just the way she liked it.

Soon, her path took her to a stream that shimmered in the light, and had water that was perfectly clear. As she crouched down, she cupped a handful of the crystal-clear water before bringing it up to her mouth. Gazing blankly into the reflection, she spied a girl with violet eyes, and a face void of expression. She splashed the water against her face, before taking another handful and this time drinking from it.

She was nearing her destination, seeing that the snow was starting to calm down significantly. And as she neared the spot, she suddenly stopped.

She blinked rapidly, taking a hand to rub at her eyes almost in disbelief. There was nothing on this floor that could surprise her anymore, as she had mapped the area better than anyone else in her free time. But the figure in front of her was not part of this floor. He was a player.

A black-haired boy with an effeminate face, he was wearing a rather regal ensemble of black and gold. He might have looked more impressive if not for the long red scarf he had wrapped around his neck that clashed with his clothing. Seeing her shocked look, he rubbed at the back of his neck nervously.

"Yo?" He 'greeted' in a hesitant tone.

Her eyes suddenly narrowed, and she had to refrain from growling at the sight of the boy before her. "You!"

He held up both his hands in surrender almost immediately, but the girl did not halt her heavy stomps towards him. As she neared him, he feared that she was going to slap him and almost braced himself when she stopped.

She jabbed at his chest heavily, and with a voice that held no room for argument, she began her tirade.

"You damn stalker—"

"W-wait!"

"—annoying, idiotic, stupid—"

"Hey..."

"—completely brainless—"

Kirito raised an eyebrow as the girl ranted and raved, inwardly surprised and heartened by the amount of emotion she was showing. It was the most response he had gotten out of her yet... never mind the fact that they were mostly insults. With that in mind, he waited patiently for the girl to tire of her outrage.

It took a long time, but eventually the girl ran out of breath and turned to giving him a glare that had little effect due to her gasping figure.

"How did you find me?" She finally asked, turning away from him.

He ran a hand through his hair in a nervous gesture. "Well... It was a guess on my part, as there really is only one place on this floor that I could think of. With the way you come and go, it had to be in the middle of the forest."

She crossed her arms, eyes still narrowed. "That doesn't explain how you found this place so fast. Without following me at least..."

"Of course I didn't," he added quickly, seeing her accusing look. "I knew that there was one building out here that a player could possibly stay at. The rumour about the Witch's Cabin."

The white-cloaked figure gave him a look of disbelief, not quite impressed with his explanation. "You found where I am with just a rumour?"

"...Lucky guess?" He offered weakly.

She huffed, before breaking off from him. Though her pace was just a walk, it seemed like she wanted to put as much distance between her and the male player. Her wishes were not granted however, as Kirito fell into step a few paces behind her. She was tempted to yell at him again, but refrained knowing that it was futile.

He had been plaguing her constantly since their meeting.

At first, she had been surprised at their encounter, having recognized him for who he was. After all, who wouldn't? Everywhere she went, she had heard tales of his reputation... him and his guild. The strongest guild in Aincrad, with the strongest players of the front lines. What was even more surprising to her was the fact that four out of five of the main party were girls.

In a predominantly male game, four of the top players were female. That had been surprising to her, but it also filled her with a sense of longing. To her, a girl that had been as weak as could be, the four of them were an inspiration. At least... when she still wanted to reach the top. Now, she couldn't care less.

She stated her views on him pretty clearly after their encounter on Christmas, when he found her hunting for rabbits again. To her surprise, he was unfazed, and did not take offense to her words. He simply observed and pointed out a few spots where he had seen the tell-tale signs of the rare mobs before leaving. That had not been the end of it.

Ever since then, every now and then he would show up, often in the middle of nowhere just to surprise her. And to top it all off, he always just wanted to make conversation, asking her how her day was or remarking on her skill with the spear. She grew frustrated by his presence, and tried to ignore him— she even hunted in a completely new area to no avail. He always showed up, at least once a week, just to say hello.

It was frustrating her to no end.

She did not know anything about his motives, but there was something in his eyes every time he looked at her. In all of her short life, she had seen many people look at her in fear, loathing, and pity. But the look in his eyes... the meaning constantly eluded her, she could not put her finger on it.

At last, growing frustrated with his presence, she twirled around to face him, a stern expression on her face. "Shouldn't you be busy at this moment? Why are you still bothering me?"

He quirked his eyebrows, before suddenly smiling. "So you've been keeping track of me, hmm? Interesting..."

She growled at his tone, before narrowing her eyes. "What is that supposed to mean?"

"Nothing."

The boy was incredibly frustrating. She almost wanted to strangle him there and then, but she refrained, knowing that it would only be what he wanted. The famed player seemed especially happy every time she yelled at him for some reason.

What an odd person.

With those thoughts in mind, she spun around, determined on leaving him behind this time. Taking off in a sprint she hurried along a path that only she recalled in her mind. Ducking dexterously under a wayward branch, she slid for a few feet before dashing off towards the left. This path was littered with trees, allowing little room to maneuver swiftly.

Yet, she was accustomed to this path, having used it multiple times in the past in order to bypass the rather persistent mobs that followed her sometimes. Ducking and swerving around the trees, she kept her momentum going, determined to outpace her pursuer. There was no way even _he _could keep up with her in such unfamiliar terrain, she had lost even the most stubborn of wolf mobs this way. There was no way that someone—

She heard his steps before she saw him, and she gaped as he appeared directly behind her, appearing unruffled by the 'chase'. He gave her a knowing grin, before picking up his speed so that he was next to her.

Kirito smiled as he kept pace with the white-cloaked girl, finding the exertion to be rather fun in its own way. One of the first things he had mastered in the beta was the terrain of the game, as he preferred to have nothing slowing down his mobility. It helped that the game took into consideration your AGI and STR stats, which allowed you to move much faster, and jump much higher than normal. With the abundant number of points he had in AGI, he had little trouble in keeping up with the girl beside him.

Something she resented apparently, as she gave him a loud cry of frustration.

He chuckled, letting her take the lead before falling in behind her. He didn't know why he kept teasing the girl in front of him, as it wasn't something that he usually did intentionally. Well, at least to this extent. But something about the way she responded was captivating in its own way. As if she dropped just a bit of her emotionless facade each time.

A few hectic minutes later she slowed down as the trees began to thin and the snow that was a constant on the floor lessened significantly. In fact, it was almost like he had entered into a different floor, as he could actually see the floor of the forest for the first time. He was curious, because the entire floor was known for its heavy snowfall, and something like this likely indicated a special area.

He was proven correct when they finally cleared the treeline, and he felt his breath catch as he caught sight of the area she had led him to. The uniqueness of the area was felt almost immediately, as his body warmed up significantly. Here, in this clearing, the sun bathed the area in its light, providing the perfect temperature of springtime. Looking around, he noticed that the floor of the clearing was a healthy hue of green, and scattered about the field were a myriad of colourful flowers. At the center of the clearing, sat a lonely looking cottage, with smoke billowing from its chimneys.

Somehow, he felt at peace.

The girl beside him watched him curiously as he scanned the place that she called home. She didn't know why she still led him here, as she could have simply led him away with a bit of extra effort. He never pushed her too much, often leaving when he felt that she was no longer in the mood for banter. Yet... somehow she felt that she could trust him.

"It's beautiful." He murmured from her side.

She didn't know why she felt embarrassed by his observation, but looked away anyway. He was impressed, and she felt oddly satisfied. The place she called home wasn't as bad as what someone would have figured. As a player, living alone in the forest sounded rather desolate. But here... away from everything and everyone, she could be at peace with herself. There was no one here to judge her. It provided her with warmth and quiet, the two things she had wanted most since the beginning. Of course, it helped that the cottage had comfortable beds, and she wasn't as alone as most would think.

"...I know." She agreed quietly, taking a deep breath of air. The familiar scent of the flowers was distinctive, and she felt relaxed. Here, in this little corner of the world, she could finally lower her guard.

She watched on as Kirito promptly sat down without care, patting the soft grass around him experimentally. He smiled before closing his eyes and laying down on his back without care. He was the perfect picture of serenity, and she felt sleepy just looking at his relaxed form.

Shaking her head, she pointedly stepped past him without a second look, heading towards the cottage.

"Not going to invite me in?" The boy remarked in a casual tone, eyes still closed.

"Not a chance, don't even think about coming in."

Though she had rebuffed him rather handedly, Kirito only chuckled in return. He had his arms crossed behind his head as he peered up into the clear skies. Small moments like these were the ones that he cherished. Where the reality of the world was forgotten if only for a single moment, and he could just be Kirigaya Kazuto once more.

He lingered for a few minutes more, before standing with a sigh. There was still work to be done.

* * *

It was dark by the time he arrived back, and as he opened the door, the smell of delicious food immediately hit his senses. He smiled, body moving towards the kitchen area almost on autopilot. There, he gazed upon the familiar sight of Asuna, bustling around the kitchen while humming. He held in a chuckle as he watched her move about with a fond smile on his face. The girl really was quite different when in the comfort of their own home.

It seemed that he wasn't as quiet as he had thought, as she turned around, eyes lightening up at the sight of him. "Welcome home, Kirito-kun."

"Hey, Asuna." He greeted back with a smile. "You know I wouldn't miss your cooking for the world."

She pouted at his comment. "Sometimes I think you like my cooking better than me."

He blinked at her accusation, before gasping loudly in false shock. "W-what? How could you say that, Asuna?"

He closed the distance between them, and before she could protest, he took both of her hands in his own. Peering deep into her eyes, he gave her his most serious expression he could muster. "I can't live without you, Asuna..."

She felt her heart stop as he continued to close the distance between them. "W-w-wha—"

"After all, you're the one who makes them in the first place."

He smiled beamingly down at her, and she stilled at his comment. Not sensing the change in her mood, Kirito hugged her.

"Kirito-kun?"

Turning around, he saw the confused look on Lisbeth's face. "Hey Liz—"

-SLAP-

* * *

Kirito rubbed at his face absently, sitting down at the kitchen table with a shell shocked expression on his face. He could not believe that the typically docile Asuna had hit him of all people. The worst part was that he didn't know what he had done to deserve such treatment.

"Really, Kiri-bou..." Argo began with a chastising tone. "You should know better than playing with a maiden's heart."

He blinked rapidly in confusion. "What do you mean?"

Three similar sighs came in unison from the other girls at the table. Sometimes Kirito could be the smartest person they knew, and sometimes he could be denser than a rock. Though there was a certain charm that came with him, they mused.

"I thought it was funny..."

Argo sighed, palming her face at his bewildered expression. "Just stop, Ki-bou."

They giggled as he pouted, the sight being rather unusual on his face.

"Come on, Kirito-kun. It couldn't have hurt." Lisbeth remarked with a laugh as he was still rubbing at his cheeks.

Before they could continue their teasing, the figure of Asuna made her way to the table, a platter of food held in each hand. She was humming happily, showing no sign of her previous irritation, though she made a point of ignoring Kirito's stare as she sat down beside him.

"Let's eat!"

Without further preamble, they dug into the delicious meal that Asuna prepared. Her cooking was delicious as usual, and for a few moments the only sounds were the moans of enjoyment and satisfaction as they ate their dinner. Praises were sung to a happy Asuna, and before long, they were back to the usual banter that they were used to. The twins were not with them tonight, citing something about completing Argo's request.

The atmosphere around them couldn't be anything else other than homely. Lisbeth had once remarked that she felt as if she was a part of a family when she was with them. Argo of course had promptly replied with 'then who is the father and mother?'. The resulting arguments were fairly funny in his opinion, even though he was eventually dragged into it. The main thought had never left him however.

Family.

It was a word that aptly described them. Not in the traditional sense, but rather in the strength of the bonds that connected them. He would do anything for his girls, and he knew that they felt the same. Being with them everyday reminded him of the days he had spent with his own family. It saddened him that he could barely remember a time when he had a full dinner with them. Shaking his head from such thoughts, he turned his attention back to watching the light banter.

Argo's teasing voice was prominent as was the resulting laughter. Asuna as always was trying to keep things calm but couldn't do anything as Lisbeth joined in on the teasing that was now centered on Silica. The poor younger girl was dazed as the girls made off-handed remarks that flew over her head while causing her to blush and stutter at the same time.

He smiled as Silica began to stammer out a protest, denying that she had a fear of insects anymore. Argo laughed out loud, hand reaching out to ruffle the smaller girl's hair fondly. Looking to his right as he felt a light tap on his shoulders, he raised his eyebrows slightly as Asuna fed him a piece of chicken. The girl huffed and looked away afterwards, but he simply chuckled in return.

The dinner was very enjoyable, and all of them lingered around the table even after they had all finished eating. Sometimes they liked to simply relax and talk with each other, sharing stories and ideas while talking late into the night. Today was one of those, and it was close to midnight by the time they had decided to retire.

As the girls took a shower together, he moved towards the balcony, sitting down with a sigh on the reclining chair. The night sky was cloudless and littered with stars, the artificial moon seemed brighter than ever, casting Kirito's surroundings in a picturesque glow. It was a rather soothing setting, despite the fact that the sky was just an illusion.

Countless floors had sights like these that continued to take his breath away. Once more, he wondered what it would have been like to venture about this world freely, without the daunting presence of death hanging above you. A virtual reality that truly blurred the line between the worlds. In essence, what Kayaba had created was another world. One that he had forced upon 10,000 players. But it was a world all the same, containing everything you could find in reality, maybe even more.

During the beta, he had found himself lost in the game. Forgetting the amount of time that had passed, and forgetting where he had come from. For a few moments he had _become_ Kirito, the hero that had offered to slay the dangerous monsters that had been plaguing the village. And when he was jolted from the game, either by his sister or mother, or by realizing just how long he had stayed inside, the feeling never left. The longing of a world filled with swords, challenges, and adventure.

Perhaps that had been what Kayaba had envisioned. A _world_ of his creation, not just a game.

Shaking his head from further thoughts, he leaned back into the chair observing the twinklings stars for a moment before opening his game menu. The menu materialized before him with a soft sound, illuminating the area in its translucent blue glow. Selecting the overlay for his character, he scanned his stats with a calculative eye.

**[Kirito]**

**[Level: **76**]**

**[HP: **9546**]**

.

.

.

**[Skill Slots: **10**]**

Scanning over his stats absently, he noted that his AGI was beginning to catch up to his STR. His stats were very high for his level, most of it attributed to his gear; the majority of which were considered boss drops or higher. His current sword was one of Lisbeth's creations, **[Cold Sapphire]**, possessing a rather impressive item level of 46 and considering the limits of the material composition, was probably the best one-handed sword available for the current floor. Besides the impressive Attack Power of the 'slash' type sword, it was further enhanced to a +13. The limit of enhancement on this sword was 20, and Lisbeth had been quite annoyed when she failed 7 out of 20 times on the upgrade process. He didn't mind however, as the sword's natural stats already gave his STR and AGI a notable boost.

His equipment was something to be proud of, and every piece was highly sought after. After all, having access to one of the best blacksmiths in the game, while also having access to the best tailor in the game gave him quite the edge. His current cloak and armour was made from a leather obtained from a lizard-type mini-boss on the 40th floor. In Aincrad, having armour that was a step better than the current floor was essential. There should be no expense spared when selecting your gear or upgrades.

Scanning past his equipment, he looked at the list of skills he had chosen. There were almost an uncountable number of skills in SAO, and it had been an exciting feature for most people at first. But the problem came with the limited number of skill slots afforded to the player. Without such a limit, every player would try their hand at every skill available, instead of striving to perfect the few they had. Things such as 'Searching', 'Hiding, 'Sprint' could be learned and mastered, and sometimes they unlocked further skills upon mastery. Along with passive abilities, there were the obvious crafting professions that one could specialize in along with numerous combat skills.

If the traditional MMO player had been saddened by the lack of magic in the game, then the uncountable number of skill selections proved to be a suitable substitute. With such a large variety, most player skill-sets were unique from each other, with their specializations showing through in most cases.

Kirito's build was not a standard build. Having leveled up with a two to one distribution of STR and AGI, he had a high amount of armour and HP compared to other would-be swordsmen. In the beta, he had found that putting all your points into AGI may have allowed you to attack much faster but the damage was minimal in comparison. Especially since the STR requirements of the higher leveled swords dictated what your weapon selection looked like. Those who valued AGI had to use either daggers, claws or rapiers. Having high STR allowed him to wield his preferred longswords as the weight of the weapons felt right in his hands.

That wasn't to say his AGI was lacking, as he picked up the slack through his equipment. STR was a prime requirement for most equipment, and he capitalized on this by prioritizing the AGI bonuses on his equipment.

His «One-Handed Sword» skill was mastered, along with «Parry». His «Searching» skill was close to mastery, as well as his «Tracking». Most of his non-combat skill selection was in movement or hunting. It had taken close to a year to master one-handed sword, and he had been saddened to see the progress bar fill completely. The ability to see your growth had been something he had always enjoyed from his history in other games. And the fact that he would no longer gain anymore bonuses was a bit of a letdown.

Fortunately or unfortunately for him however, it seemed that nothing was normal. He traced his fingers down the ten skills he had, hovering over the newest addition in deep contemplation. It had been a surprise, as he had received no game notice or any indication of having acquired the skill. So it had come as a shock when the skill had suddenly appeared out of nowhere.

It was a considerable addition, and it almost appeared too good to be true. The circumstances surrounding the skill was suspicious, as if there had been some outside influence. To that end, he had been hesitant in using the skill thus far, leaving it there at the back of his head.

But as the upcoming boss battle loomed closer and closer, he knew that he could not afford to keep such a thing hidden. If the worst happened, he knew without a doubt that they would need everything they had to move forward. Even if he had to use a handout from the very person he had sworn to bring down.

Closing the menu with a flourish, and pushing his darkening thoughts to the back of his mind, he went back inside. There was a long day ahead.

* * *

The dungeon had been cleared out.

Walking through the dimly lit hallways, they encountered no resistance. That didn't mean they relaxed their guards however, as they kept their weapons out as a precaution. The mobs would not be spawning again for a while, but that didn't mean they could afford to overlook the occasional rare spawn or something like that. Not in a game where death was a reality.

He looked over the group of girls that were following his lead. They each had a resolute expression on their face, none of them showing a hint of trepidation. Pride washed over him as he looked over each and every single one of them. The five of them had been in 49 boss fights thus far. Each and every single one of those battles were ones where they had put their lives on the line.

And they succeeded.

No matter what special property the boss had, they triumphed over it. Often leading the way, they had carved a tempo of synergy that had been unique to them. It worked, as their teamwork was second to none in SAO. Not many groups worked well together, at least with such efficiency and strength.

Now it would be different.

Giving the youngest member of their guild a look, he caught her attention. "Are you sure about this, Silica?"

She nodded once in slight exasperation. All of them had been subtly, and not-so-subtly in the case of Lisbeth, been trying to convince her to ignore Heathcliff's request. But she had been resolute. "Yes. Don't worry, Kirito-kun, I'll be fine."

Refraining from commenting, he turned his head forward once more with difficulty. He was glad that Silica had grown so far, but at the same time, he still couldn't withhold his urge to protect her with all of his might. She was the youngest of them all, but she was braver than what most people expected of her. Ever since the first floor, she had been making waves in the way she progressed through the game.

Turning the corner at the end of the current hallway, the area gave way to a much larger chamber. The huge stone doors of the Boss Room were immediately apparent, followed by the large gathering of players before the doors. Each and every single face was noticeable, as they were likely the strongest players that the clearing group had to offer.

Ignoring the daunting atmosphere, he led the girls straight towards the center of the group where Heathcliff was conversing in low tones with Ryuken. As they made their way past the gathering of players, he noted the expressions on their faces. They were scared.

It was an understandable fear. This was not going to be another challenging but simple boss fight. This was going to be a battle where the difficulty was unknown and victory was not a guarantee. Even with the abundant levels of experience and equipment that they all possessed, no one could be confident of their victory. After all, the fight on the 25th floor had wiped out almost an entire raid group of the Army's players. The only thing that had saved them that day were the reinforcements that came from the rest of the guilds.

This time, there would be no reinforcements. There was a set number of parties that were allowed in a boss room at once, with a set maximum capacity of 48 players, there was little in the way of assistance that could be offered. Especially considering that the players here were at the top of the player spectrum.

If they could not defeat this boss, then the others surely had no chance.

Arriving in front of Heathcliff, he shared a firm nod with the two other leaders of the front lines. There was no more time, and despite their differences, everything had to be in sync for this to work. To that end, he had been helping Heathcliff with the strategization, going through many scenarios before settling on the one that they had agreed would be the most successful.

They even went through no little amount of training with the group that would be tackling the boss, leaving little to chance.

"Then everyone is here." Heathcliff remarked in a soft tone that echoed throughout the stone chamber. "We will begin our last minute checks before entering, so please, gather into your parties."

Silica looked hesitant as she navigated through her menu in order to find the party options. There, she hovered over the 'Leave' option.

"It's alright, Silica." Kirito gave her a reassuring smile. "Just... stay safe, alright?"

Her eyes were sad as she pressed down on the button. The girls closed in to give her their own words of encouragement, shielding her from the rest of the prying eyes. He watched on fondly, before scanning the rest of the groups with a careful eye.

"Yo, Kirito."

Turning to the speaker, he smiled as he saw the figure of Klein with his trademark headband. "Hey, Klein."

"Quite a gathering we have here," the older man remarked in a casual tone. "You know there are KoB members grouped up with DDA members?"

He hummed in agreement, looking to see the parties of players that were glaring at each other with barely hidden contempt. "Not so smart in theory... but hopefully they can work together during the battle."

"Heh, hopefully. So are you ready for this?"

Kirito thought for a moment before replying. "As ready as we'll ever be."

There was a lull in the conversation as he spotted another figure coming up to them. He was a tall player, his figure looming over the comparatively smaller players. Bald, with dark eyes and armour that spoke of his profession, he was a familiar sight.

"Yo, Agil."

"Hey, Agil."

The large man gave them a gruff greeting in reply, shouldering his rather large battle-axe for the moment. Kirito never knew how the man trained so well considering the hours he worked at his own shop. Especially since Agil was one of the more experienced clearers around, despite rarely being on the front lines. Still, he somehow managed to keep his levels equal to the majority of the clearers, and it was his strength with the axe that had allowed him a spot in this party.

"Oh, right." Kirito pulled up his menu, promptly adding the two players before him to his party.

It felt a bit odd, seeing the two foreign names under that of Asuna, Lisbeth, and Argo. They had very rarely added players to their 'permanent' party, despite the fact that they had a open slot most of the time. For this battle however, they had to fill every opening available. He didn't mind working with the two players before him, as they were two of the few players that were not put off by his reputation. It was an added bonus that they were strong players in their own right.

Before they could continue their conversations, the voice of Heathcliff suddenly echoed throughout the chamber once more.

"Before we begin, I would like to thank all of you who have shown up today. This was not required of any of you, yet here you are willing to put your life on the line for the sake of our freedom, and you should all be proud of that fact."

Another one of Heathcliff's impactful speeches, and Kirito could feel the shift in the air as the man continued. Camaraderie, hope and conviction spread through the 48 players that gathered before the 50th floor boss. Gone was the previous air of nervousness, and instead there was a sense of anticipation.

**[**You have been invited to join a Raid by Heathcliff.**]**

Accepting the invite, he tuned out the rest of the speech in order to look over his equipment one last time. Equipping his favoured sword, and making sure he had all of his potions in readily accessible locations, he made his way over to the girls who had been talking in low tones the whole time.

He did not interrupt them, merely settling next to a pensive looking Argo; who gave him a brief smile. Asuna and Lisbeth were fussing over Silica, and it appeared that she was trying to allay most of their fears. It was a humorous scene, with the younger girl trying to reassure her much older friends.

"Make sure you have everything ready, girls." His voice was quiet and calm, but served to quell their nervousness.

Silica gave him a thankful expression as Asuna and Lisbeth were distracted by the motions of preparation. He moved over to her, and gave her a pat on the head, Pina chirped happily at the sight of him.

"How are you feeling?" He asked in a low tone.

"...Nervous."

He hummed in thought. "That's only natural, Silica. But... you know, the only reason we are against you stepping up isn't because we doubt your abilities."

She blinked in surprise. "What do you mean?"

"You're strong. One of the strongest players here, that I have no doubt. It's just... we won't be there to watch your back, so be safe alright?"

She blinked back tears at his words, and instead of replying, she simply moved forward to embrace him. Her head only came up to his chest, and he wrapped his hands around her the best he could. In the background, he heard the other girls giving a sigh of 'aww', to which he pointedly ignored.

Soon enough, Heathcliff finished his speech, and gave the signal for everyone to form up. Giving Silica one last pat on the head, they watched her join the tanking party with Heathcliff. She made quite a contrasting figure among the burly figures of the knights. They were all equipped with heavy plate armour while her ensemble was much lighter.

He felt the girls settle around him, as they brought up the rear of the group. Klein and Agil were uncharacteristically silent as they stood with them. In the next few moments, everyone would be putting their lives on the line with no guarantee of success. The difference between any other boss fight and this one was immense; the difficulty was incomparable.

Heathcliff pushed open the large stone doors with a single push. The doors creaked open eerily with the sound of stone moving against stone. When the doors finally stopped, they were greeted with the sight of a seemingly endless hall. As they stepped inside however, their vision cleared and the hall was revealed to be quite spacious.

The door behind them shut with a loud crash, startling many of the players.

The 'hall' was vast, but it was not the width of the room which staggered the players, but the awe-inspiring height. Ornate pillars, stretching as far as the eye could see held up the ceiling of the room. Staring upwards, one could barely make out the ceiling before it was enveloped in darkness. The area was dimly lit by stands of torches, casting the area in an unnatural orange glow.

They had to walk for half a minute before seeing the figure of the boss. It was just as the scouts had described. A tremendous stone statue, depicting the image of a buddha with six arms. It was sitting on an elaborate golden throne, and the sight of the boss caused many to shudder in fear and anticipation.

It was massive.

That was the first thought that came to Kirito's head. Even from their vantage point, he could already tell that the boss was abnormally huge. He guessed that the average player would only be as tall as the feet of the boss. They had fought large bosses before, most of them being creatures of various types. But none of them held a candle to the sheer scale of the boss before them. Now, the incredibly tall ceilings made sense. There would be no way for the boss to maneuver otherwise.

There was no sign of life from the statue even as they stopped a good distance away from the sitting form. Heathcliff took the lead, leading his party of their best armoured players, their shields at the front and ready. Silica's dragon flew around them in a distressed manner, as if sensing the difficulty of the boss before them.

-CRACK-

A loud echoing cracking sound echoed throughout the chamber, and everyone stared in horror as the large statue came into life. Every movement was accompanied by the ominous cracking, and as the boss began to stand up it bellowed out a guttural sound of warning, a deafening noise reminiscent of a fog horn. What had to be the most ominous sight were the six gargantuan arms of the boss fanning out before materializing a massive scimitar in each hand. Each sword was the same bronze colour of its skin, but it was the size that sent most of the players reeling, no words could have prepared them for the unadulterated presence of the colossal being.

Without further preamble, the boss marched forward, moving to meet the threat before him. Heathcliff stopped and told his fellow party members to fan out behind him. The blood knight stood unflinching in the face of the hulking beast that sent tremors with every step. His tower shield was almost as tall as he was, but even so, it felt incredibly small in comparison to the boss' blades.

Everyone held their breaths as the boss came into range and swung downwards with his right set of hands. The lower arm came first, and like a cascading avalanche, the rest followed. Heathcliff weathered the first blow with his ornate shield, grunting at the force of the impact which sent him sliding back a few inches. The next two blows almost sent him staggering, causing him to bend his knee slightly. But true to his moniker, he did not flinch and with his free hand, he lashed out with a sword skill. The blue glow of his sword met the giant's scimitar, but seemed to do little to nothing as the giant swung down with his other set of arms.

Heathcliff was caught off guard by the swiftness of the rebuttal, but thankfully did not have to do anything as someone else lept into the fray. The small figure of Silica was noticed immediately, as was the crystal shield that she held up in the air at a reflective angle. Her shield of translucent blue shimmered in the low light, and was recognizable to all of the clearers. **[Crystal Fortune]** was a boss drop from the 25th floor boss, and even now, it was considered an incredibly powerful piece of equipment. A unique class of equipment, its special ability was «Absorbtion»; any momentum brought on by an attack was negated.

It was an incredible sight to see, the comparatively tiny figure of Silica weathering the storm of blows unflinchingly. As the last of the swords bounced off however, the drawback of the shield was revealed. Translucent blue flashed red, indicating the cooldown period of the shield. Incredibly strong defense, but limited to short bursts. She would have to wait for the shield to recharge, as in its current state, it was reduced to a mere shield with a low item level.

She did not need to worry however, as the rest of her party members took advantage of the moment by attacking the boss with their own array of one-handed sword skills. The giant roared once more, the sound as unnatural as before. His target still appeared to be Heathcliff, and he ignored the rest of the players prickling away at his shin in favour of raining down blow upon blow onto the knight leader.

Heathcliff was unyielding in his defense, never moving back, and instead, he moved forward in order to meet the rain of blows each time. Taking liberties when he could, he dodged and ducked and slashed with his sword, all the while taking minimal damage. Steadily, he led the boss around in a half circle, making sure the back of the boss was facing the rest of the clearers. When the momentous blows became too much, he gestured for a switch where Silica or one of the other tanks would take over for a short period.

Taking the brief moment of respite, the knight looked up at the HP bar of the boss, and was dismayed to see that it had barely moved. A few slivers of health were gone from the first bar, but they had already been fighting for five minutes or so. The boss had an overwhelming toughness. Seeing that there was nothing that differed from the normal mechanics, Heathcliff made a decision.

It was a brief hand gesture, but Kirito had been waiting for it all along, standing tensely in the few minutes that they had been fighting. He shared a nod with his fellow party members before leading the way forward. The other clearers, having been prepped on what to do, followed his lead. Sprinting forward, they shared a roar of contention as they neared the boss, and prepared themselves with their strongest sword skills.

The back of the monstrous creature was staggering as they closed the distance, the looming figure only became bigger the closer they got. Nevertheless, most of them cleared their minds of any fear and focused on the task at hand. Their job should be the easier in comparison, simply being the damage dealers of the group.

Kirito's opening salvo was one of his highest leveled sword skills that he rarely used due to the amount of time it took to execute. His blade glowed red as it traced a star into the calf of the giant. Even as he finished, he could see that he wasn't alone in his attack as Asuna followed up with her own fencing skill, a rapid series of seven strikes that was focused onto a single point. Argo entered with her own furious attack, the speed at which her claws cleaved through the air was incredible. Lisbeth however, outshined them all with her newly acquired skill. She used a skill which caused pitch black energy to surround the head of her mace, and as she swung down with tremendous force, the impact of the energy-laden mace left a spider-web pattern of cracks on the giant's skin.

They were joined by the other clearers, including Klein and Agil who used their best abilities as soon as they could. This was the pattern that followed, with everyone blowing their highest damaging skills, and backing off when their cooldowns started to stack. Quickly replacing them were the ones who had been waiting in the back, and using this method, they were able to maximize the amount of damage they were doing. This strategy also proved to be essential against this boss as it minimized the amount of aggro that a single player could garner, making sure the boss focused only on the tanks.

And yet...

As Kirito scanned the boss' HP bars with a hopeful eye, he was dismayed at what he found. It had barely moved, perhaps only a tenth of the way. Every single clearer had used their highest leveled cooldowns, and on any other boss it would have done a considerable amount of damage. There was a reason why many of these skills were rarely used during a boss fight. They all required specific positioning as well as setup time, both of which were hard to find during the intensity of a boss fight. With the amount of damage they had dished out, he knew that they were in for a long battle.

Truly this boss was meant to put a halt to any further effort. He could not even imagine how long this boss would have taken if SAO were just a regular game. With their advantageous level as well as their equipment, they should have been able to overpower this boss. This was only in theory however, and in practice one could only hope that everything went according to plan. He could see the anticipation turning into panic from the faces of his fellow clearers.

"Keep attacking!" He ordered, stepping back inside to repeat his skill that just came off of cooldown.

Spurred on by his order, the parties shook themselves out of their shock and moved into the fast rotation of sword skills. Even though the boss was much tougher than they had expected, there was no unique gimmick that had accompanied this boss just yet. If this boss had anything like summons or an AoE spell, they would have been doomed. But as they were, just attacking the boss while the tanking group focused on gathering its attention, they could see themselves heading towards the end.

Such a tactic would rarely work against the previous bosses they had fought before, as they tended to be more sporadic and mobile than this one. For Heathcliff to be able to take the brunt of the aggression meant that this boss was hardwired this way, as the boss ignored any attempts to 'switch' with the knight. Some of it had to be attributed to the fact that Heathcliff was blocking each blow, which was something that increased the amount of aggro he held.

But even someone of his stature could not hold such an onslaught for long, and as the first bar finally began to dissipate, he shouted for a switch. Silica and Ryuken stepped up beside him, each of them handling a set of arms. The red knight took the moment to drink down a high leveled potion, bringing his health back towards green. The force of the blows he had been blocking still dealt considerable damage to his person, and it was only because of the level of his armour and stats that allowed him to deal with it that much better than anyone else.

It was a slow heal, due to amount of HP he had in comparison to the quality of the potion. Much higher quality potions would not be found for awhile, or at least not until they found somebody with the rumoured potion making skill. His health replenished fully just in time for him to step back in, as Silica and Ryuken seemed to be having trouble weathering the blows. They each shot him an appreciative look as he took over again. The rest of their tanking group had been ready to swap when he had stepped back in.

Again, weathering the brunt of the cascading scimitars with barely a flinch, Heathcliff focused on making sure not to falter or step back. They needed their DPS to be uninterrupted, and despite how long it was taking, the progress was very reassuring. If things continued as they were, then they could clear this with little issue.

The first bar of HP shattered, and suddenly something changed.

The boss roared once more, sending shivers down the spines of the players that were much nearer now. Heathcliff grunted as the newest rain of blows sent him stumbling back just a bit, and he pulled his full attention back to the boss. The force of the scimitars felt heavier, and he was straining not to be pushed back by the onslaught. He dimly noted in the corner of his eyes that his HP was falling faster than before, and it was with a distressing thought that he knew why.

Colour. It was steadily gaining colour. From the opaque bronze of before, splotches of colour could be seen forming on the giant's armour. It was as if the statue was finally coming to life, and 'unfreezing' itself so to speak. The increase in speed and strength was likely a testament to that fact.

Heathcliff wasn't the only person who noticed, as Kirito had been keeping an eye on everything the best he could. He felt something cold settle into the pits of his stomach as he witnessed the transformation of the boss. The tanks were still handling the giant perfectly fine, but that was most likely due to how strong Heathcliff's defense was. If the boss continued to increase in speed and power however, then not even Heathcliff's legendary defense would be able to keep up. And the moment he broke... the rest of the raid group was sure to follow.

Kirito couldn't be sure if it was a transitional thing or something that was guided by time, but it was with a renewed fury that he sent his attacks. They couldn't back out now from the new discovery, and he put his trust into those around him. There was only one way out, and it was forward.

Slowly, but steadily, they chipped away at the second bar much faster than the previous time. The clearers began to become accustomed to their rotation, and had even increased the speed in which they launched their skills. They engrossed themselves in the pattern of attacks and switches, focusing upon the task at hand. Time passed unnoticed, and many of them lost themselves in the motions of combat, not even realizing how long had passed.

Despite the increased ferocity of the boss, the tanking group continued to weather each storm of attacks. Heathcliff shifted his effort from directly blocking towards a more dodge and parry focused stance. The rest of his party took up his slack, taking blows for him every now and then, ensuring that his health stayed in the green. They couldn't afford to slip up even just a bit, as every one of them moved as one, making sure there were no holes in their defense.

The second bar of HP disappeared soon after, and again, the pace suddenly changed. It was incredibly daunting as the speed in which the blades fell increased, leaving after-images in their wake. Such was the speed of the attacks, that it seemed like the three swords on each hand moved as one. Each strike sent Heathcliff sliding back a few feet, and he had to crouch low to sustain himself against the furious onslaught. His HP started to drain as he could no longer focus on dodging the majority of the swings, and had to weather all of them.

The few who saw him couldn't help the fear that washed over them as the renowned shield user fell to his knees. There was the beginnings of panic in the air, and it was soon exacerbated by the sound of someone's sword breaking into pieces. A few startled eyes centered onto the unfortunate clearer, who had just realized what happened after your durability hit zero. It was with a few muttered curses, that the remaining clearers realized just how much they had depleted their weapons' durability. Many of them lamented upon the fact that they had not chosen the durability upgrade during the enhancement process, and had to switch to an inferior backup weapon in the meantime.

This phase was marked by weary anticipation as their attacks slowed down, but surprisingly, the HP of the boss continued to decline at a rapid pace. With the second last bar to go, they trudged onwards, determined to see this to the end. As long as their defense held, they could finish this.

It was inevitable then, that something would happen to put a halt to that thought.

Another sound of equipment breaking, and this time it did not come from the destruction of a weapon. One of the shield users, a KoB member was sent flying as his shield broke apart in his haste to block one of the attacks by himself. The angle he had set his shield had been unnatural, and the swords cleaved right through his shield and into him. Thankfully, he was sent crashing away from a pillar, and was left dazed on the floor with his HP in the red. If he had smashed into a pillar, the impact likely would have killed him.

Again, panic settled into the hearts of the clearing party, and despite the encouraging words from Kirito and a few others, they could not continue at the same pace as before. They knew one thing by now, and it was that the boss became stronger the more damage it received, and they did not know if they could handle the transition into the last phase. Still, seeing the courageous sight of Heathcliff and the others picking up the slack served to keep them in line for the moment. And as they whittled away the last remnants of the third HP bar, the next stage of the boss was promptly discovered.

A guttural roar, and this time it was not the unnaturally metallic sound from before. This time, it sounded human. Every inch of the boss was now coloured, and it appeared even more menacing than before. It had a heavy set of armour over its tanned skin, and the face that had been unmoving stone turned into an ugly sneer as it continued to gaze down at Heathcliff. With an angry cry, the boss suddenly held both sets of his arms high in the air for a split second.

Dark purplish energy gathered around each of its six scimitars, and everyone felt their hearts stop as the swords came down with mind-numbing speed. This time, the defenders were not prepared. A massive explosion resulted from the impact, and two bodies were sent flying out of the smoke cloud that had suddenly covered the area.

A loud painful scream echoed before it impacted against a large stone pillar, shattering into the distinctive particles of light that all players had come to know as death. They were still for a split second, before many voices cried out in alarm. The first casualty had occurred, and it seemed that many had recognized who it was.

There was no time to gather their bearings however, as the boss let out another roar before continuing his onslaught. Heathcliff seemed to have gathered himself, as he hastily readied his shield once more. The man proved to be on a different level from the others as he continued to weather the insane intensity of attacks, although it was with a flinch as each blow sent him reeling back each time. By now, it was no longer three swords that came down in a cascading pattern, but rather two swords that could slash three times at once, such was their speed.

"GO! Finish this!"

His shout startled the motionless players, who immediately began to respond, moving back into the fray once more. It was completely different this time, as all sense of order seemed to have left them. They charged in, uncaring if they collided with another clearer, intent on utilizing all of their cooldowns. For a few brief moments, everything was a chaotic but effective mess as their attacks whittle down the final bar of HP to half.

Then, it happened once more.

The sinister purple glow filled the swords once more, and with the same attack it rained downwards. Except this time, many of the clearers were caught out of position. It was with a startling calm that he realized that Silica was in direct path of the skill. Before he could even yell out a warning, the swords came crashing down, sending a good number of players flying outwards. He could not tell if the screams were of the deaths that followed or because of the unexpected impact. His eyes continued to scan the area, hoping to catch a sign of Silica. He knew that she was resilient, but that impact could have fatally wounded just about anybody.

To his relief, the dust cleared away to reveal the crouching figure of the girl. She had her shield held before her, but it proved to be unnecessary as Heathcliff stood over her in a protective manner. For a very brief second, those who gazed upon the scene were filled with a sense of hope, before it was abruptly dashed. Another sound of breaking glass, and this time it was centered on their most resilient player.

Heathcliff's red tower shield shattered into nothingness. Slack-jawed, the crowd of clearers stood still at the sight. They did not have time to react however, as the boss did not care about his most recent success, and with a tremendous upwards swing, sent Heathcliff careening into a pillar. The impact left a crack into the stone, and the knight fell into a heap at the base of the pillar.

That was all that was needed for someone to react.

"R-Retreat!"

The hastily called order came from Sansa, and soon enough it was echoed by the nearest party members. Everyone went for their teleport crystals, the word for the main city on their lips.

"Wait!" Kirito shouted, cutting into their motions with a forced tone. "We can still finish this, the boss is in the red!"

Sure enough, there was only a sliver of HP left, and it would only take a few more salvos to take the giant down. If the players were persuaded by Kirito's observation however, they promptly changed their mind as the giant turned around with surprising grace. The first swing that followed sliced a player directly in half, taking no consideration of the player's level or armour. He didn't even get a moment to scream before he shattered into luminescent light.

Kirito ignored the screams of panic and fear, and rushed in with his sword drawn. He dimly noted a select few players following his lead. His chosen sword skill was «Vorpal Strike», aimed at a section that was not covered in armour. The sword skill struck true, and he noted a noticeable decrease in the HP of the giant boss. A few more sword skills came into contact from the others, and the boss reached into a critical zone.

_Just a few more!_

It was not to be, with a single upwards swing, carrying forth the momentum of three enormous scimitars, he sent several of the clearers flying back. That was enough for the observers as they hastily brought out their teleport crystals and shouted the name of the first city that came to mind.

"Retreat, NOW!"

Again, the voice of Sansa rang out into the chamber, with nobody contesting them this time. Kirito glared upwards at the boss, who was chasing the dissipating lights of the teleporting players with a renewed fury. If not for the anxious grip of Asuna and Argo on his arms, he might have leapt in anyway. But it was the sight of Silica assisting Heathcliff near the back that finally collapsed his resolve.

"Retreat!" He echoed in a tone that brooked no room for argument. The few remaining clearers obeyed without a second thought.

Even as he took out his teleport crystal, it was with a cold fury in his eyes as he gazed upon the seemingly triumphant boss. The single sliver of HP was all it had left, but coming this close was not acceptable.

They had lost.

* * *

"You!"

The larger man gripped the front of his shirt aggressively, almost lifting him upwards with the force. It was such an aggressive move that it triggered the anti-harassment warning from the edge of his screen. If he wanted to, he could have sent the aggressor into jail for a good amount of time, but instead, he gazed into the angry eyes with his own calm ones.

"What the _hell_ is wrong with you?!" Sansa asked in a furious whisper that was heard all around the teleport gate. Most of them had the right frame of mind to teleport to the 49th floor city, and all of them were treated to the sight of the esteemed Prince being manhandled by a leader of the DDA.

"We should have left!"

Kirito sneered, and brushed off the hands that were holding him. "We could have finished it."

"At what cost, huh?! How many more died in that moment of indecision?"

"It was not your call to make!"

Sansa growled, stepping forward once more. "I tried to save everyone that was left, seeing as you were clearly out of your mind. That boss took out Heathcliff with a single sword skill, did you think we could have continued without him?!"

"One more wave would have done it," He answered back, refusing to back down from the man before him. "Just a single sword skill and we could have finished it! All of our sacrifices... they were for nothing!"

For a second, nobody spoke, unwilling to take sides as they were both conflicted. Nobody could fault Sansa for calling the retreat order, as it was what many of them had felt was needed the moment Heathcliff fell. But it was Kirito's words that reminded them of what they had lost. The fear of death had gripped them, overriding any feeling of vengeance at the sight of their comrade's death.

"Sacrifice..." Sansa's eyes gleamed with an unknown emotion. "You don't even know what that means, _prince._ Who do you think just lost his friends?"

Kirito stepped back at the sheer amount of emotion in the player's eyes. Suddenly, he realized that the first two players that had perished had been part of the DDA. He tried to open his mouth in order to salvage the situation but it was too late.

"I've known it since the beginning, but this just confirms it in my mind. _You_ are not fit to lead anybody, much less us. I will _never_ follow you again." Sansa spat harshly, before turning around and heading off into the city. His contingent of DDA members followed at a more subdued manner, but most of them spared him no glance as they went past him.

With a sigh, Kirito stepped back, leaning onto a nearby building. Everything had gone so wrong, and nothing had gone to plan. And to make matters even worse, he just had to make the situation even worse. Now things would be almost unsalvageable with the DDA, and he did not know what to do.

He gripped his fists tightly in anger and guilt.

There was nothing he could do.

* * *

**A/N: Thanks for reading. **

Phew, finally another chapter. I will just say that nothing else will kill your inspiration for creativity more than University.

So we come to somewhere past the half point of this story, and hopefully by now, the only ones reading this will be the people that have enjoyed this story. I would just like to take a moment to address something. In the beginning, the only motive for this story I had in mind was to make a more assertive Kirito with tons of fun character interactions. This was showcased quite clearly in my first chapter, and despite the disparaging level of quality in terms of plot it showed, I wouldn't change it. Mostly because the type of readers that it draws is the only ones that I care to write for. Those of you who want an entertaining story and an enjoyable read. That's the only reason why I write, for entertainment. I couldn't care less about the people who could not get behind the first chapter simply because of the premise or some scenes. After all, fanfiction is fanfiction, nothing more, nothing less. The moment it stops being entertaining, I will stop writing. (And yes, the only reason I am saying this is because I still get PMs from time to time from people telling me to justify certain scenes or portrayals that I have chosen from the beginning. Really, it is quite tedious.) And though I know some of you may not have liked certain developments, I still appreciate the support you have shown throughout the earlier chapters. The core of the story remains the same, although with a heavy dosage of plot added as an afterthought.

* * *

My beta actually brought up some good points about this chapter, so I'll address it in a Q&A format.

**Why does Heathcliff seem to overshadow Kirito sometimes?** It is because he respects the man, and knows that if there were any other person better suited to lead them it would be him. Therefore, he doesn't mind when the knight takes charge in certain situations like prep talk and relaying their plans as it takes the pressure off of him. Kirito at this point is still reluctant to take FULL charge of the clearers. He will only move forward from this point.

**What's with the interest in the seemingly random girl? **The Sinon part of this chapter might have been a bit awkward, I was trying to add a bit of Kirito's teasing personality in order to lead into the next chapter where their connection is explained further.

**Why didn't Kirito use the new skill he acquired? This version of Kirito would have no issues revealing a unique skill. **I think it was fairly obvious what Kirito was referring to, and yes, it is Dual Blades. He would have had no hesitation in using the unique skill, if it wasn't a brand new addition that he is still weary about. He knows that it is essentially a handout from Kayaba, and probably assumes that the man is watching him somewhere. Besides that fact, it is a fairly low leveled skill in comparison to his maxed one handed sword skill. In SAO, I assume that the passive bonuses granted by your weapon selection plays an important role too. So at the current level, it is not more effective than one-handed sword in terms of just damage. Though there is one thing that it is much more effective at, and that is defense. This will come into play soon enough =].

I think the main complaint is that Kirito is not badass enough, or isn't showing the true leadership capabilities that he has. No worries though, as things are only going to have to go up for Kirito. After all, the harder you fall, the greater you rise. The eventual rematch will showcase exactly why Kirito is strongest with two swords.

Hopefully, this was enjoyable, and thanks to everyone who have supported me. Feel free to leave a review, or discuss on the forum thread.

**Next Chapter: Warm Embrace**

-In which the backstory of our favourite white-haired girl is revealed.

**Thanks to n0mster for beta'ing as always.**


	11. Chapter 11 (Interlude) Warm Embrace

"_How did it end up like this?"_

The harsh howling of the winds surrounded her, constantly pelting her with hail and snow. She had always enjoyed the weather of this floor, but at this very moment, she cursed it. Her grip loosened, and she felt herself slipping further down. This should never have happened, she knew everything about this floor after all.

But she had forgotten the most important fact; this floor was designed to be unpredictable. Even if she knew the paths by heart, the landscape was forever changing, being hidden by the snow. In certain areas, it could be completely buried by snow, leaving no indication that a path once stood there. In her haste, she had forgotten where she was, and there were no recognizable landmarks around her.

She was carrying too much weight. SAO was a realistic game in terms of interaction with the world. Augmented with STR and AGI, a player could easily surpass the limits set by reality, but it didn't help much if you were dangling off the edge of a cliff. Desperately, she tried to pull herself forward, but the snow was light and slippery. She was slowly slipping, and there was nothing she could do about it.

The familiar feeling of dread creeped up from within her, and she felt a coldness that had nothing to do with the weather around her. Was this it then? To have survived this death game all this time... to die like this. She closed her eyes. What was the point then? To have clung to life so desperately, only to see it end like this. To have gotten this far... while others did not. What was she supposed to feel?

She was scared.

She wanted to reach out, to call out, and to have anyone answer her. But she knew that was just a fleeting dream. In this world... and in the other world, she was alone. She had always been alone, shutting off all contact with others. Friends... they never lasted, not in a world like this. Because someone like her did not deserve the comfort of others.

Someone like her...

Maybe it was for the best. She would die, alone and unknown by all. There was no sense clinging to a false hope. She had done that all her life, and look where it had gotten her. The only person who would mourn her death would be her grandmother. A flash of guilt tore through her. The other person... someone who had probably forgotten all about her. Her mother was better off without her.

Acceptance... why then was she crying?

Her hands finally slipped and as the encroaching darkness finally surrounded her, she thought that she had heard a distant voice... calling her name. But that had to be an illusion.

No one knew who she was.

Not even herself.

* * *

_She had done it._

_With her own two hands... she had fought._

_To protect._

_That was her goal, to save her mother—who was so very weak. The woman who had raised her with glassy eyes, forever scarred by the death of her husband. Someone who cared for her with an absent mind... but she loved her all the same._

_She loved her so very much._

'_Why?'_

_Everyone was looking at her with such an awful expression—as if they were scared of her. As if she was the one who had pointed the gun at them._

_They looked at her with fear, eyeing the pooling blood at her feet, and the dying man before her, gasping feebly for his life._

'_I...'_

_Her most precious person... looked at her with such fear—such shock, that it was as if she was staring at a stranger._

'_Kaasan..."_

_She looked down at the one who had started this. His dilated pupils were unfocused, but just as she looked into them, he looked back. In that few seconds of lucidity... he cursed her._

_She didn't want this..._

_The gun in her hands grew heavy, but even with her hands shaking, she found that she could not let it go. She couldn't feel her body._

'_Someone... save me... anyone..."_

_Someone __stepped in front of her, blocking her view of the one she had murdered. Her eyes reflexively sought out the person before her. Startling clear eyes of the darkest __ebony __met her own violet orbs._

_He did not look at her with fear._

_She realised that he was trying to say something, but she couldn't hear anything. Dimly aware of her surroundings, she focused on his eyes. They seemed so full of emotion... but why wasn't he afraid? Her hands were stained with blood. She was a murderer._

_His hands reached out hesitantly to touch her, and he rested a single hand against her cheek._

'_So warm...'_

_He said something in a soothing manner, and suddenly she was pulled into his embrace. Hands wrapped around her protectively, she finally realized how much she was shaking. Her knees gave out and she collapsed against him. Tears falling uncontrollably, she clung to him like a lifeline._

_The cold steel fell to the floor._

"_It's okay..." He whispered into her ears. "Everything will be okay."_

_She sobbed as he led her away, away from the scene of death. Away from the looks of fear and accusation. Away from the place that had taken her innocence._

'_So very warm...' _

* * *

I looked over the assignment briefly, looking for a good place to start. Even though it had just been handed out today, it was supposed to be worth a good portion of our grade. Sighing, I placed the sheet back onto the table and got up. The apartment I called home was fairly sparse, but it was quaint and in a quiet area. It was pretty cheap as well.

My grandmother had protested when I had told her about my wish to go to the city in order to attend high school. She had said that a girl like myself shouldn't be all alone in the big city. I told her I was fine, and she eventually relented. I was not like most other girls my age. I was independant, having grown up with an absent-minded mother.

I didn't particularly care for the city. I found the place too loud and crowded to be enjoyable. But the alternative would have been to remain in my hometown. I could stand that even less. The people in that town... they kept looking at me with their eyes filled with pity, as if they understood me. The kids were even worse, they did not have the tact to remain quiet, and instead, they thought it was something to be discussed. Constant questions and pestering had made my school life there a constant annoyance. Even if I closed myself off from the world, it did nothing to stop the looks and rumours.

Everything in that town served to remind me of the day I killed a man.

At least, in this city, I was truly alone. Just another quiet girl among the crowds of students. I much preferred this to the constant staring back home. Not before long, things had finally settled into monotony. I went to school each day, and went back home to finish my homework before going to sleep. It was a good schedule, allowing me to throw myself into the work, and to temporarily escape. As a result, my grades were very good, and I supposed that was something to be proud about.

Yet, I felt empty.

I had thought that monotony would be a welcome change, and for a time it was. But sometimes I couldn't help but wish I had something else. Someone else... to alleviate the boredom. I had tried to make friends, I really did, but... I was too different. What they were interested in were the latest trends and tv shows, most of which I had no idea about. But the most obvious thing that separated me from the other girls was the simple fact that I could not relate. I had no hobbies or interests that stood out, besides reading the occasional book.

Perhaps it was for the best. Having a friend would mean they would become closer to me. Close enough to discover my past, and I had no doubt what they would think of me when my past came to light. I never wanted to see those stares filled with pity once more.

Sitting down at my desk, I stared at the computer screen for a moment before opening the browser. I might as well take a break for the moment, with my mind unable to focus on the assignment. Maybe I would find something that would interest me, however unlikely it was. The internet was an endless source of entertainment... or so everyone kept saying. There wasn't much that caught my attention, although I did enjoy the occasional web novel or two.

It was when I went to see if a novel I was following had updated that I stumbled upon something that caught my attention. It was innocuous enough, being just a simple featured article on the main page of my chosen search engine. But the title... 'Sword Art Online' was very familiar to me. As it should be, since just about the whole world was talking about it. Apparently a next generation game was arriving on a completely new Virtual Reality platform called NerveGear. There was as much attention on the game as there was on its creator, Kayaba Akihiko.

I didn't know what had compelled me to click on the article, maybe it was curiosity brought on by my boredom, but I read the entire thing. It had been... enlightening, the author of the article was obviously a big fan of the whole idea. There were a lot of big words being thrown around, but from my understanding, it was going to be revolutionary. It was not just restricted to the field of games, the technology that Kayaba talked about had many other applications if what he claimed held true. The thing that had stuck with me however, was a simple tagline.

"_The world of Aincrad awaits, come discover your true self in another reality." _

To discover myself...

It was a pointless idea, I wasn't one to believe in something as sensationalized as that. Yet, the simple idea stirred something within me. I wanted to give it a try. I wanted to see with my own two eyes, a whole new world. There wasn't much to look forward in this one after all...

Going to the website, I filled in all of the required information and applied for the beta. After submitting, I felt my excitement drain away. Realistically, I had little to no chance at getting accepted into the beta program. I had nothing that would stand out, I wasn't even a gamer. With the popularity of the game, the number of people applying would have been absurd. There was no way I would be picked out of everyone else.

With a sigh, I turned off the computer. I had wasted enough time on frivolous things, might as well work on my assignment.

For a time, all thoughts of the game were forgotten.

* * *

When the package arrived in the mail, I was surprised. For one, I never received any letters of notice from anyone. If it was from my family then they would have called me first, and even then, a package from them was rare. Any letters I received were usually junk mail that I threw into the trash.

But this package was pretty big, and I had to pick it up at the nearest post-office. When I arrived home and opened it up, I was greeted by a formal letter. It was from Argus industries, and at first I struggled to remember why that was so relevant. Then it hit me... Argus was the company behind SAO and the NerveGear. I was still in disbelief as I read through the letter.

_Congratulations, Asada Shino. You have been selected to participate in the beta testing of __«Sword Art Online»__._

I hadn't even given the idea a second thought ever since I had signed up. Being selected in reality... I didn't know what to feel. I was excited of course, because of just how exclusive this was. Only a thousand applicants were selected out of the millions of people who had applied. The chances of being selected were almost astronomical, and yet, here I was.

I unboxed the package containing the NerveGear, examining the immaculate look of the device before taking it out. It felt heavy in my hands, and I could hardly believe that such a tiny device could be used to emulate an entire reality. I put it away after awhile, having examined it to the best of my non-existent technical abilities.

The beta testing would not start for another week, and despite telling myself that I was being foolish... I couldn't wait. For the first time in forever, I looked forward to something.

* * *

"Link start."

With those two simple words, the world faded around me. Everything melded into black, and for a split second, I panicked, wondering what was happening. Then, it stabilized and I was introduced into a colourful field of blue. I was awed as I stared at my surroundings, walls of hexagonal crystals moved and blinked in random patterns. The experience was surreal.

This was beyond anything I ever expected. When they had advertised 'total immersion', I did not know what it meant. Now, it was obvious what they meant by 'full dive' when talking about the NerveGear. There was no way for me to tell that I was lying on my bed in the real world, from my perspective I was floating in a world made up of pixels.

I was welcomed to the world by a few messages accompanied by the proper menu screen. The AI was helpful in helping me through the steps in order to create my character. It created a virtual copy of me, allowing me to scan it from all angles. Seeing an exact copy of my body floating in the air was a new experience. My body looked small... frail and weak, much like how I felt.

I did not want my avatar to be a reflection of myself. No, I wanted to distance myself as far as I could from the real me.

Adjusting the various settings, I made sure that my avatar would not be recognizable as Asada Shino, the quiet middle schooler. I chose a very light shade of blue, almost indistinguishable from white at first glance. A unique hairstyle... and an athletic body type that was much taller than my regular height.

**[**Username: Sinon**]**

And as I finished confirming my selection, the world faded around me once more. The AI voice that had directed me thus far faded away, leaving me with a brief farewell. This time, it was different.

I blinked as everything came into existence around me. I must have looked quite awkward as I stood there with my mouth gaping. But I couldn't help myself, this... this was beyond what I was expecting. I was in a city of some sort, it was pristine with a focus on clean, aesthetic design. But what astounded me was the _detail_ that surrounded the city. I couldn't distinguish this world from reality at first, it was simply too amazing.

In a daze, I walked past the other beta-testers and into the streets of the city. The atmosphere... the people that inhabited this place, it all felt real. It was almost as if I had been actually dropped into the middle of a medieval town. Was this what the creator had meant when he spoke of a _second_ reality?

There was no other way to describe this place. Everything felt living and alive, and I felt a surge of excitement flow through me. Here, in this second world, I did not have to be Asada Shino; a girl damaged by her tragic past. Here... I could be someone else.

I did not know how long it had been as I strolled through the city, simply staring at the sights, still getting used to the entire concept. I was not alone in my awe, as I could see several other beta testers with the same wide-eyed looks. The servers had opened only a few hours ago, yet it was starting to become filled. Thankfully, the city was more than big enough to hold the thousand beta testers.

After I had done my fair share of sightseeing, I decided to venture outside of the city. It wasn't hard to find an exit, as there were many large gates outside of the City of Beginnings. The area outside of the city was enormous. As far as I could see, were fields of plush grass, and just at the edge of my vision, I could see the signs of forests and other environments. Truly, it was a sight to behold.

I walked along the path in a slight daze, still awed by the detail of this world. I could feel the gentle breeze rolling through the fields, the scent of fresh grass as well as the sounds of distant birds. Crouching down, I smoothed my hand over the grass, and I was astonished by the feeling. There was a slight difference compared to real life, the grass being more brittle than I remembered.

Then there was an odd sound behind me.

Turning around, I had to blink twice to make sure what I was seeing was true. It was a boar... a large blue boar that was eyeing me curiously while huffing. I stood up in haste, trying to distance myself from the dangerous looking monster. It didn't make any more moves, and I took a second to gather myself. If the little I had read before diving in had been true, then these were the weakest monsters in the game.

In a game such as this, one was supposed to defeat monsters and complete quests in order to level up and grow stronger. I really was out of my depth here. Shaking my head, I headed back into the city, taking care not to run into any more of those boars on the way. It seemed like I had to buy some equipment first before I could fight. I had gleaned that much from the included help guide at least.

* * *

«Sword Art Online» was unlike anything I had ever experienced.

After I had gotten used to moving around the world of VR, I decided to set out into the fields to try and gain some experience. It had been a disaster. I had to run away from the first boar I attacked, as I just couldn't get over how awkward it felt actually attacking with a weapon. Combat in this game was as real as it got, with the monster making vicious sounds and doing its best to kill your virtual self.

The weapon I had chosen was a spear. I didn't know why I picked that weapon in particular, only deciding on it based on the weapon NPC's suggestion. I decided to give it a shot, and I couldn't deny wielding the weapon felt rather invigorating. Of course, I had no idea what I was doing, but there was something enjoyable about being able to swing around a weapon like that with ease.

In terms of 'skill', I had none. Really, I hadn't the first clue in how to wield a spear properly, and besides the starting sword skills that I could activate, my attacks were pathetic to say the least. Awkward jabs and slices where I could, all the while waiting for my sword skills to come off cool down... it was an odd experience.

It took me a long time to learn how to defeat my first boar, but I felt proud that I did not have to ask anyone for assistance. Everyone was a beginner at this game, but some were obviously more adept than most. I could tell that some of them were highly experienced with these type of games, just by the way they moved with confidence. As for me, I had never played an RPG in my life.

But... it was fun.

Logging into this world day after day... it was fun. Each day, I became just a little bit stronger and experienced. I could feel my character growing stronger, and sometimes I really felt myself drawn into the world, not realizing just how long had passed until it was well into the night. I was even late to school once, having slept through my morning alarm clock.

I had even gotten the hang of the spear, or so I liked to think. I had been treating it like a stick, a big stick but a stick nonetheless. When I forced myself to relax, and truly thought out my attacks, it became a lot easier. In a game that had its own physics system—however unrealistic it was—a spear was most effective when thrust. It was when I was experimenting with the various ways to thrust a spear, trying an over-the-shoulder one-handed grip, that I first accidentally threw my spear. My first attempt was dismal, ending in a mad scramble for my discarded weapon and an even messier scuffle with the mob I had been training on, but something about the fight had rang true. I began to _purposely _throw my spear as a way to initiate fights, incorporating it into a fight-style that was as far as I knew, entirely unique among beta-testers and it was then, that I truly understood the strength of my weapon. The range and power of a spear was comforting to me.

Every day, I dived in and became Sinon, the powerful spearwoman who conquered everything alone. I was embellishing a bit of course, as I was not that good at the game, just being somewhere in the middle in terms of levels. Yet, I had gotten this far by myself, with no help from any other player. It felt nice to have that sense of inner strength.

I don't know what I was thinking really, but perhaps I had thought that if I continued playing, some of the strength that I had gathered as 'Sinon' would transfer back to reality. It really was a foolish thought... but I kept playing. Soon, I felt myself drawn into the game entirely, learning the other aspects of MMORPG-styled games.

For a time, there was nothing on my mind except the world of Aincrad. There, I had gained a reputation as a strong and reliable solo player. I no longer hesitated accepting the party invites, and sometimes I even led the odd party or two. My goal was no longer to get as far as I could by myself. It was to reach the top of this castle, to see what awaited us at the end of this world.

And soon enough, the beta test was over. It was a saddening revelation when I finally took off the NerveGear for what was going to be the last time in a while. I would have to wait until the official release. For now, there would no longer be any way into the world that I had thrived in. No way to become the strong heroine I liked to imagine I was.

Now, I was grounded once more, back to the gray world that I had wanted to escape from. Back to being Asada Shino.

* * *

"How are you, Shino-chan?"

I leaned my head against the wall, absently looking out the window. It was raining again, and the pitter-patter of the raindrops was rather relaxing.

"Shino-chan?" The concerned voice on the phone called out.

"I'm fine, obaasan," I replied quietly.

"I see..." There was some shuffling on the other end of the phone. "And how have you settled down, Shino? The new school isn't being too much, I hope."

"It's... alright, I'm doing well for myself." My grades were good as far as I could tell, there wasn't much in my life besides homework these days. Not since the beta testing had ended anyway.

"I'm glad to hear that, Shino-chan." There was a bit of relief in her voice, and I felt guilty for having worried her. I wasn't the most talkative person, even towards my family. My grandmother was the only person that still bothered to reach out to me.

A long time ago, I would have been saddened by that fact. Now, It was a blessing. Dealing with the constant pitying looks from every stranger was enough, but my extended family were even worse. Not only did they whisper behind my back, but the gazes they sent my _mother _and I, even before the... accident, were unsavory to say the least. I knew that none of them wanted anything to do with me. I shared the same sentiment.

"—Shino-chan, are you still there?" I was jolted out of my thoughts.

"Ah, yes... sorry."

"It's fine," There was a brief pause from the other end, and I could practically sense the hesitation. "... Are you coming back for the winter holidays?"

Going back... I hadn't thought about it in a while. I had left everything behind when I left that town, or at least, I had tried to. Now and again the past tended to catch up.

"It would be wonderful to see you, and of course I'm sure everyone else wants you to visit as well." The few relatives that liked me could be counted on one hand. "And... your mother would love to see you, Shino-chan."

My mother... the very thought of her made me tense. I hadn't spoken to her in months, and even then, the conversations were very brief. She was still as fragile as always, looking around her but not really seeing. I sometimes wondered if she realized just who I was.

"Shino-chan...?"

Home... was not where I _wanted _to be, but... I couldn't keep running away forever.

"Okay." I spoke softly, staring out into the heavy rain.

If I wanted to move on, I needed to be stronger. To no longer be filled with doubt and longing, to no longer be plagued by nightmares of the past.

To be free.

* * *

Disbelief.

As I stared up at the red-robed figure looming down at us, eclipsing us with his shadow, I felt my veins run cold, and a sensation that I dimly recognized as fear enveloped me. His words echoed and sent the masses into confusion; they did not believe him. I could hardly believe him. Not when he was talking about something as absurd as this.

But there was something in his voice that told me all I needed to know. It was the voice of someone with supreme conviction, as if this was something that had been predetermined. As if we were all powerless... and we truly were. SAO, despite its realistic features and settings, was designed as a game. Yet, when the 'fun' factor was taken away, you were left with a completely new world.

A second reality.

I had entered this world in order to find a way to gather myself, to find some sort of inner strength. And, for the few months of the beta, I had done it. As 'Sinon', the highly capable solo player, I had managed to find the courage to move forward. For a time, it had even affected the real me. But... the only reason I had managed to reach this far was because I knew... in the back of my mind, that this was all just a game.

An illusion.

I couldn't be harmed here. Every time I ventured out, risking myself, I was in no real danger. Despite the realism of combat, and the terror that sometimes came with 'death', I held no illusions that this was anything but a game. Now... with that aspect taken away, I was all too aware of what this world was. It was a death trap, the risks that had once been fun were as real as ever.

Dying in this world meant dying in real life.

The mirror item flashed, and enveloped every player in the vicinity. Staring back at me, was the familiar visage of Asada Shino; the quiet girl that was as fragile as the world she had lived in. It didn't matter that I had once braved this world alone, without a single guiding hand. How could I hope to beat this game... knowing that every sliver of 'HP' was as real as the blood that flowed through me in reality.

I couldn't.

Fear enveloped me, and I hugged myself, trying to stop the trembling that rippled through me. I could hear the distant shouts of outrage and despair, but they were drowned out by the cries of disbelief. They had still not come to realize the situation. Every single player was now trapped in this floating castle, a world that was now _real. _

What could I do? I wasn't strong... I had never been strong. .

Absolutely nothing.

* * *

I didn't know how long had passed really, I just knew that it was now at a point where the initial panic had run its course and now the general population was left with a single conclusion. Kayaba had been true to his word, and all 10,000 players were now effectively trapped inside of this game. Already, that number had declined.

In the very first days, even hours, many had scoffed and refused to believe the situation they were left in. The more restless of the bunch had even leapt off the edge of the world, their virtual bodies disintegrating as they fell to their deaths. Some had followed them, all of them thinking that this was all just one sick joke, and that if they proved that they could respawn then somehow the joke would end.

They did not return.

All of those who had jumped off were erased from the system, as if they had logged off. Those who had them on friends lists noticed the greyed out names, and many had believed that they had succeeded in logging out of the game... by dying. Yet, when the first day had passed and there were no sign of the 'joke' letting up, the panic had begun to set in full-force. People took to the streets, screaming and crying for some sort of response. A few of the very brave, or foolish, ran out of the city and into the fields. But the majority of the population did nothing but sit... and wait.

It came to a point where everyone realized that they were not going to be rescued. Any hint of help should have reached us by now. This was not something that the world could ignore, and surely if anything could be done about it, then it was being done. The fact that there had been nothing from the outside world only meant one thing. We were alone.

I sat inside the room of one of the many available inns. As this was the City of Beginnings, the costs for renting the rooms were quite affordable, even with just the initial value of col that a player started with. Almost all of the city's inns were occupied by the trapped players, all of them wanting a place to sleep, a place where they could drown out the heavy despair that enveloped the air.

Sitting on the soft bed, looking out of the large window into the night sky, one could easily mistake this world as reality. To the newer players, who had never experienced virtual reality, they might have even been lulled into a false sense of safety. Because this didn't feel like entrapment, they still had the freedom of movement and the vain hope of rescue. When you closed your eyes, and all signs of the virtual HUD that accompanied your vision vanished, you could somehow believe that you were at home, safe and in your bed.

But I knew... better than most, that this was just an illusion. Despite the freedom we were given, I had no doubt that we were now trapped, dancing to the tunes of a madman. He told us to clear this game, to defeat the bosses of all 100 floors. It might have been doable, and some might have found it _fun_. But... the difficulty of this game was no longer something that could be overlooked. You only had one life, and I couldn't even count how many times I had died in the beta.

The very first boss battle in the beta had been a disaster. A complete wipe. How could he expect us to clear all 100 floors when the consequences of failure meant death? How could anyone venture out there knowing that every time they encountered a monster there was a good chance that they could be killed?

No, I couldn't imagine anyone that could do that. To put away all of your fears and trepidations in some hope that you could beat this game. That was impossible, it couldn't be done. The majority of the players were just your average citizens... the concept of fighting for your life should have been completely foreign. There was no chance that we could somehow beat this game.

I sat there alone, staring aimlessly out into the night sky, feeling as helpless as ever, but then again, that feeling had never truly left me in the first place.

* * *

"Here is your order, dear customer."

The waitress placed the hot plate onto the table, giving me a brief bow before going back to the kitchens. For someone who had already experienced this world, the life-like actions of NPCs still continued to surprise me. Sarah, the NPC that I had become quite familiar with was a waitress dressed in a tavern girl's outfit, equipped with a white apron. Though she did not have many lines of dialogue, her facial expressions and the way she always appeared to be happy was very realistic.

I stared down at the bowl of fresh stew and the side of buttered bread with something akin to contentment. I was not being complacent, I was all too aware of my situation, but everyone had to adapt one way or another—the alternative was better off unsaid. Though I had no illusions of somehow contributing to the clearing effort, that did not mean I could stand simply staying inside of the inn room all day. I had done enough of that during the first week.

Hunger in this game could be ignored if one had the will, you weren't going to die of starvation at any rate. However, the _sensation _of hunger never left, and it gnawed at you until you forced yourself to eat something. To the players that had holed themselves up in the city, getting something to eat with their meagre funds proved to be a problem. Some of them had even splurged all of their funds on food almost immediately, forcing them to sleep on the streets. Those who had run out of funds had to resort to begging as they were unlikely to know how to earn any col. The ones that were more aware took to questing around the city or scavenging around the nearby fields.

Luckily for the ones that were helpless, there were those who were kind enough to arrange some sort of relief effort. It seemed that a large group of players had formed some sort of guild to try and govern the newbies, and that they were accepting members despite the fact that there wasn't any official guild function this early in the game. Even though they did not have much funds, by pooling together their resources, they proved able enough to feed any players that needed it at the least.

As a beta tester, I did not have any issues with acquiring col. In the «City of Beginnings», there were many available quests. Not all of them required you to ever risk yourself, and in fact, the majority of them were fairly easy to do. By conversing with NPCs and asking them if they needed anything done, you could typically trigger a quest. They varied depending on the type of NPC, but they ranged from courier missions to collection missions and even combat missions. Very few took up the last type of quests, despite the fact that the mobs were at very low levels.

I did not have to move far to find a quest, as the very owner of this inn had multiple quests available. Most of them were very simple tasks; find a certain NPC and bring back the required items. Though they paid out very little col and exp, the good thing about them was the fact that they could be done almost daily. The additional benefit was the stacking rapport that I built with the NPC owner. By continuing to help her out, the owner now regarded me as a 'friend', and as such the costs for both renting a room and ordering a meal was significantly cheaper. Even with my meagre funds, I could afford to eat a full-course meal.

It was a good trade, compared to the majority of other players.

Like many other inns in the city, this one was crowded as well, with most of the rooms being occupied. Three weeks into this death game, and I could still see my own sullen expression reflected in the other players' faces. A few of the players were seated in the dining room as well, most of them nibbling on the cheapest thing on the menu; a roll of bread along with water. I could see several of them looking my way in envy, one of them even looked to be drooling.

It was after I had taken a nibble of the bread that I noticed I was being stared at rather intensely. It was from another player at the table beside mine, and it gave me pause. The player was a girl who looked to be my age, with long brown hair and a wide-eyed expression. She was definitely drooling at my stew.

"Hana." She was not alone, as a blue-haired boy nudged her from the side. "H-hey, you're being rude."

She appeared to be startled for a second, before straightening up and locking gazes with me. I had to fight the urge to look downwards. I had been trying to erase that habit.

"Ah! Sorry about that," she apologized with a sheepish look.

"It's fine," I replied momentarily. I couldn't help but feel awkward at her sincerity. Looking down at my soup, and then back at her, I made up my mind. "Would you like some?"

Her eyes widened, and she clapped her hands together in surprise. "Really!?"

"Hana..." The boy beside her sighed once more, giving me an apologetic look. "Sorry about her, we didn't mean to trouble you."

"That's—It's fine," I reassured them hurriedly, I wasn't any good at social situations like these. "I'm not that hungry."

He appeared to be surprised, but did relent his grip on his drooling friend. "Ah, if you're sure..."

"Yay!"

The exuberant girl took a seat next to me, and had a brilliant smile on her face as I handed her the bowl of soup. I sent her a tentative smile as she thanked me loudly before digging in. "Oooh~ This is so good!"

I watched her eat spoonful after spoonful at a ravenous pace, somewhat lamenting the fact that I had given it up. It was a really delicious dish...

"Slow down," the boy chided lightly, before turning his attention towards me. "I'm sorry about the trouble, but thank you very much for indulging her."

I waved my hand, absently nibbling on my bread. "She looked like she needed it."

"Hah... anyway, my name is Kyou." He reached out with a hand, and I hesitantly shook it. "It's nice to meet you...?"

"Sinon," I answered quietly.

"Sinon-san then, it's a pleasure." He smiled and then smacked the girl beside him handedly on the head.

"_Ow_!" She held her head and sent him a glare. "What was that for?!"

"At least introduce yourself," he muttered with a heavy sigh.

The girl blinked twice before turning towards me, and then her face lit up once more. "Ah, my name is Hana, so nice to meet you, Sinon-chan~"

"Uhm, you too." I gave them my best smile, which didn't really reach my eyes. The two of them were rather colourful, and I had to wonder what their relationship was with each other. It looked as if they had known each other for a long time.

"You stay in this inn as well, right?" Ryou asked with a small smile. "I think Hana has the room next to yours."

"That's right." I recalled seeing the brown-haired girl before, though I had never stopped to make conversation. I had even taken to wearing a cloak outside of the inn, it seemed that my appearance caused many to mistake me as someone very helpless.

"I thought so, you know you're pretty recognizable with that hoody of yours." He was referring to my white cloak that I had received as a quest reward. It was oddly comfortable and I had even taken to wearing it with the hood off indoors. "Not that we stare at you of course," he added hurriedly.

I raised a single eyebrow at his embarrassed look.

"It's just that Hana and I don't have much to do besides hanging out in the lobby." He gestured to the area near the entrance, where several comfortable looking sofas had been laid out.

"That's because you don't want to go exploring, stupid~" Hana spoke up from the bowl of stew, pointing the spoon at him accusingly. "I told you there's so much more to see!"

"Yea yea... even though we already circled the city twice..." he muttered, causing the girl to huff before going back to her meal.

"The city is pretty big," I added quietly. It had been designed to handle 10,000 players after all.

Hana perked up notably. "See see? Even Sinon-chan agrees."

"I don't see the point... the NPCs rarely say anything special, and there is not much to do considering it's just a starting area." He sighed, and then crossed his arms. "Besides... it doesn't feel right _exploring_ with all of those players... staring."

I knew what he was referring to. The streets had their fill of players during the daytime, and there was almost always something in the atmosphere as you traversed the packed streets. The sense of despair and sorrow lingered around every corner, and those who walked with a purpose were looked at weirdly. As if the ones who sought to live in this world were completely alien.

There was a brief moment of awkward silence before Kyou spoke up again.

"Uhm, forgive me if I'm being too forward, Sinon-san..." He shared a look with Hana before looking back at me. "Are you a clearer?"

I blinked, taken aback by the question. Why would he think that I was part of that incredible minority? I didn't think I looked that out of place compared to the others. The majority of the players only had the plain clothes and gear that they started out with, their col being obviously spent on food and housing. Now that I thought about it... I guess I did look out of place.

"Ah, sorry, that was rude of me, you don't have to tell us." He rubbed the back of his head sheepishly.

"I'm... not a clearer," I told them simply, absently tugging at the edges of my hood.

They looked surprised.

"But Sinon-chan, you look so professional!" Hana exclaimed excitedly. She appeared to have finished the stew and was now gesturing wildly with the spoon. "You always seem to be going somewhere and with a purpose too!"

"Ah...?" Did I really look like that? Of course I had to move around a lot, the daily quests only existed for a certain time frame and I had to travel quite far to find the right NPCs.

"You're really not a clearer then?" He asked me with surprise. "You had the right look about you..."

I looked down at the gear I was currently wearing. Besides the white hoody that I wore over the plain shirt and pants, there wasn't anything that really stood out. I guess it must have been the way I acted. This city was familiar to me after all.

"The hoody was a reward from a quest," I explained, pointing towards the matron who was cleaning down the bar. "She has several quests that you can pick up daily as well, that's why I always go in and out during the day." They both looked so surprised, had they really not known about such things? "The guidebook tells you all you need to know..." I added quietly.

"Ah, really?" The brown-haired girl opened up the menu with a gesture and quickly scrolled through her inventory to materialize the guidebook. "Wow... was this section always here?"

The first chapter of the book explained several of the features of SAO to beginners, including how to gather enough col to properly gear yourself. In the beta, you could afford to venture out with only a weapon and the plain clothes on your back, but to do so here was rather foolish. Spending a couple of weeks gathering col and buying the needed armour was definitely the proper way if someone was to risk the outsides. There were no potions or escape items this early in the game after all.

"Crap... I definitely skimmed over that," Kyou muttered with embarrassment. "I was too busy looking at the combat sections."

"Combat?" I asked with an eyebrow raised. As far as I had known, there was only the basics released by Argo in collaboration with a few others. Even in the beta phase, I had known who she was, and it seemed that she was going about the same way she had done in the beta.

"Yea, it's a revised edition that was added a couple of days later... do you not have one?" The blue-haired player materialized his own copy and showed it to me. "It was written by a player named, 'Kirito'; it's really detailed."

Taking it in my own hands, I opened up the guide and was surprised at just how many pages had been added. I knew that updated versions were going to be released, but this was almost as if the book had been tripled in size. Turning to the new sections, I immediately knew why it had attracted his attention. It was very detailed, from the way it talked about general footwork and posturing to the sword skills that should be practiced and utilized. There were even subsections where he talked about how to handle certain types of mobs, and even a section on group dynamics; how to handle yourself while in a team fight.

"Wow..." Even I was at a lost at just how much information this contained. It had dawned at me that the name 'Kirito' was familiar as well. Searching through my memories, I finally recalled that he was one of the strongest beta players, and a solo player like me. We might have partied together before, though I had tended to ignore most names during the beta.

"It's very detailed isn't it?" He asked with a smile. "Makes me wonder what it would be like to actually go out there..."

"Ara, you aren't scared, Kyou-chan?" The girl asked with a cute tilt of her head.

"Heh, you'll see... maybe when all of the chaos dies down." Though things had calmed down somewhat, it was still a daunting task to move past the safety of the city. Those who braved the field tended to do so in large groups, and very rare were the ones who ventured out alone. "I would like to see more of this world after all..."

"Me too~" She suddenly gathered one of my hands in her own. "Neh, Sinon-chan, you'll come with us when we do, won't you?"

"Uhh..." I refrained from looking away as she peered at me with her widened eyes.

"Ah, leave her be, Hana, you're bothering her again." He jabbed the girl with an elbow, causing her to pout. "Ignore her, Sinon-san."

"Meanie..."

Going outside of the city... what a thought. Maybe it was the restlessness that had been stirring inside of me, but the thought was not as appalling as it had been. I was hesitant because I knew that the danger was now real, but the alternative was even worse. To wait here for something, _anything_ to suddenly happen and somehow save me. I knew first hand that that kind of fantasy never happened in reality. To break out of this game, I would have to save myself.

I just didn't know if I could do that.

"We could always join one of those guilds that are starting to pop up, I hear that it's really safe now that the areas have been catalogued," Kyou spoke with a thoughtful tone. "We're in no hurry at any rate... who knows how long until this floor is even cleared."

"Ah, I thought that there was a group that was going to attempt it soon," Hanna added excitedly. "Everyone was talking about it at the square!"

Even I had heard about that. Supposedly there had been a meeting started by one of the clearers in an effort to lead a group of them to the boss, and to somehow defeat it. From what I knew, this boss wasn't particularly hard, especially with the level advantages that the clearers surely had. The issue was that there would be no resets... if they failed here then there was a good chance of a wipe. There would not be a second try.

"Foolish..." I muttered, clenching my hands absently. Didn't they know what would happen if they failed? What little morale that the front line had would evaporate into nothing.

"Don't say that, Sinon-chan." Her voice startled me, and I quickly realized that I had said that aloud. "Even if it's risky... the fact that there are still those out there willing to fight... it's a good thing."

The previously excitable girl looked oddly serious as she gripped my hand into her own. Beside her, the blue-haired boy nodded solemnly, and I realized that they were right. The sheer fact that these players would be risking their lives was admirable. I shouldn't be looking down on their courage... especially when I had little room to judge.

"She's right, we should give them all the support we can," Kyou spoke up with a serious expression. "They _are _fighting for us, in a way."

I found myself nodding.

"Well, enough of that. Tell me, Sinon-chan, how do you feel about blue hair?" She was back to her normal self it appeared, a smirk on her face.

Her friend looked affronted. "Again with that? What's wrong with my hair!?"

As the two began to bicker and argue in good fun, I found myself following their antics with a small smile. Maybe it was because of how nice the two of them seemed, but I found myself enjoying their presence. I felt that even if I kept talking with them, they would not pry or force myself to act. It was a nice feeling.

We talked for a while, both of them talking about anything that came to mind while asking for my opinion. Personal matters were rarely touched on, and I found myself participating and enjoying myself. Time blurred around me, and it was a surprise to me when the door to the inn was suddenly slammed open.

"Big news!" Someone shouted into the inn, triggering a few chastisements from the NPCs. The newcomer—a rather tall and stocky man—ignored them and waved for everyone to gather around him. Curiously, we approached him, as did the others inside of the inn. It appeared that several others had filtered in through the door unnoticed by me during the time I had spent talking.

"The first floor has been _cleared_!" He shouted as loud as he could into the air, his hands thrown upwards in a cheering manner.

For a second, nobody moved, unable to comprehend what he had shouted. Then, chaos broke out. Cheering and shouting, and a few were even crying. All of them were in joy however, as they pressed the man for more information. Even as Hana hugged me tightly and started jumping around me, I could do nothing but stare in shock. Then, as the one who had shouted the news was tackled to the ground by one of the cheering players, I felt it. A smile of elation was on my face.

For the first time in a long while... I felt hopeful. There might be a way to clear this death game afterall.

* * *

I narrowed my eyes, focusing on the large creature that stared back at me. This one was definitely much bigger than the ones I had grown used to, but it should still be quite easy given my current level. It began to paw at the ground and at the same time, I hefted my spear up over my shoulders, like a javelin. Taking a deep breath, I reminded myself to relax, this shouldn't be that hard. I had done this before.

With a running start, I began to close the distance, and the moment that I passed the aggro range, the green cursor above the creature turned red and it let out an angry snarl. Just as it began its charge, I had already made my move. Putting all of my strength into the action, I threw my spear into the air.

It flew straight.

There was a cry of pain from the creature, the spear piercing one of its eyes before dislodging itself due to the immediate thrashing. The creature skidded to a halt, blind and staggering from the critical hit. By the time it had recovered, I had already picked up my trusty spear and had lanced its side several times, leaving large red scars in my wake.

«Greater Boars» were very sturdy mobs, and it was no surprise to me when it began to charge once more, this time with a renewed fury. Its size should have given anyone pause, as the vicious tusks that accompanied the creature were proportional to its immense form. I was lucky then, that I had taken down a numerous amount of these creatures in my time. With all of that power and speed, their weakness was obvious.

Even as it came within thrusting range of my spear, I stayed my hand. Patience was key, and when its tusks came close enough to skewer through me, I immediately spun to my left, leaving just enough room for the enormous beast to plow through without touching me. It roared indignantly, trying to gather itself and turn its massive body toward me. The weakness here was obvious. With such an enormous body, it did not have the control to really pose a threat; its turn rate was incredibly slow.

While it took its time turning, my hands were already guiding my spear into a very familiar set of sequences. A series of rapid stabs left deep indents on the creature's HP bar, and as it slowly completed its turn, I slowly moved around towards its back, leaving the occasional stab and slash where I could. There was no room to use Sword Skills without breaking my current rhythm. Just as the tusks came dangerously close to skewering my side, I leapt back, creating much needed space but allowing the boar to finally steady itself.

I would have been forced to reset my positioning and let the creature charge again, if not for the HP bar which gave me all the information I needed. While its hind legs pawed the ground in preparation of another lunge, I crouched low, bringing my trusty spear to bear. I lunged forward. A red glow enveloping my weapon as I successfully activated the Sword Skill: «Pierce». The force of the skill drove my spear into the area between the beast's eyes. For a scant moment, the creature let out a loud squeal of pain, and I felt the fear of retaliation creep up from within. Not a second later however, the boar was enveloped in a familiar glow as it shattered into a million different polygons with the distinctive sound of breaking glass.

I had done it... and with a heavy sigh I collapsed onto the grass, it had been exhausting—mentally—to fight against the mob alone. Though I had done so many times in the beta, it was entirely different here, where there were no room for mistakes. Even with my advantageous armour and weapons, there were still no rapid-healing items that I could use this early, and in a game where your HP was as good as your life blood, every bit of health was important.

The sound of clapping and cheering filled my ears, and I finally remembered my audience. I turned from my position on the ground to see the familiar visage of the brown-haired girl that I had somehow managed to befriend over the week. Hana and her friend, Kyou, had not left me alone, much to my surprise. Instead, they waited patiently for me every morning and even accompanied me on the quests, making small talk along the way. They were patient with me, somehow understanding my need for space. Somewhere along the way, we had become friends, and somehow they had managed to drag me outside of the city.

"You're so _amazing_, Sinon-chan!" The exuberant brunette bounced up to me, and promptly enveloped me in a hug, despite the fact that I was half-crouching on the ground. She sent the both of us flying onto the grass, and despite myself, I couldn't relinquish myself from her grip. "The way you dodged that charge at the last second! The -_fwoosh-_ with the spear, and the -_shrk-, _as you stabbed into its eyes, ah~ you're so cool!"

It was rather embarrassing having her snuggle into me from above, mostly due to the fact that the blue-haired player watched on while laughing. Just as I thought that I might be forced to use my spear, Kyou finally pried the excited girl off of me.

Offering his hand which I took, he sent me a smile. "That was very impressive, Sinon-san, you weren't kidding when you said that you have faced these before."

"Thank you," I muttered quietly, still unsure of how to take the constant praise. I really didn't think I was that good. It was only due to my experience in the beta that had allowed me to do so well.

The beta... that had been an awkward subject. I had been reluctant at first to reveal myself as a beta-tester to them, knowing what the common opinion was regarding beta-testers. But as I was dragged outside of the city and into the fields, it was pretty obvious that the two of them were not experienced in any way. I did not like the idea of revealing myself and perhaps alienating the first friends I had found in this game, but at the same time, I could not stand by and let them go in recklessly.

Yet, to my surprise, they understood wholeheartedly.

"_What's wrong with that, Sinon-chan? That just makes you that much cooler!"_

"_I never understood all of the beta-tester hate, it's not like it's your job to babysit everyone. Besides, if it wasn't for you guys, we wouldn't even have had a guide book at all."_

It had been heartening to hear their support, when I knew just how heated some beta-testers were still being treated. It was starting to die down, but it was still a very uncomfortable topic to talk about in public. It was a very ugly topic when you considered just how many blamed the group for the deaths of a friend or loved one. If only people were just a bit more rational, they would realize just how little help a beta tester could have possibly offered; they were just another human being after all.

"Let's go kill some more!" Hana shouted happily, already jogging into another field. Kyou followed with calls to slow down. They were an excitable bunch, but I found their enthusiasm to be very inspiring. Leveling and fighting together with a group... it was kind of fun.

"Slow down, you're going to aggro them all!"

Of course, barring the fact that Hana had little sense of self-preservation.

* * *

"Watcha' reading, Sinon-chan?" A chipper voice called from the doorway.

Without even looking up from the piece of newspaper in my hand, I already knew who it was. It was late at night when we had finally decided to retire from the training grounds, and thankfully had a warm meal at the inn before heading to bed. It seemed that I did not remember to close the door on the way in, too engrossed in the article held in my hands.

"It's one of the newsletters, 'Weekly Argo'," I replied quietly, not wanting to break the tranquility of the quiet night.

Hana bounced over with a jump to her steps, an inquisitive look on her face. "Ooh, lemme see."

I obliged her with a wry smile, she was a very bubbly girl, but for some reason it was just impossible to be mad at her. She had an innocence around her that I sometimes envied, and I couldn't help but admire. Hana had a way of making those around her relax their guards, something I had seen whenever we entered the odd party or group. Even more than that, she never pressed me for details, knowing exactly when a topic made me uncomfortable. I had never met someone like her before.

"They're about to clear the 7th floor," I told her as she settled in beside me. "The boss room was found a couple days ago."

She made a noise of surprise. "Wow... that's really fast. Neh, it's that Kirito guy leading the way right?"

"Mmhm... him and his guild," I answered softly. They were a source of great inspiration to all of the players, and even I couldn't help but admire them. To put yourself out there from the beginning, not knowing if success was even a possibility... that took a special sort of will power that not many had.

"You know I saw him the other day?"

"Really?" I blinked. There were an incredible amount of rumours circulating about him, but nobody had a picture just yet. Though there were rumours that you could buy a picture from a certain merchant at a 'reasonable' price. It was all cluttered by gossip.

"Yep!" The exuberant girl gestured with her hands, and took up a pretend serious pose. "He was all stern-faced, trying to look ahead even with everyone staring at him, and you know, he had a large group of girls following him—they are in his guild right? Anyway, he was actually really cute!"

I coughed, and didn't like the look that she sent me afterwards. "R-really?"

"Oh yes, I could almost just eat him up," she confirmed jubilantly. "Say, Sinon-chan, are you into the dark, mysterious types?"

"W-what?" I spluttered, covering my face reflexively as she started to giggle. The blush that followed was unneeded.

"Oh you, you're just so cute!" she declared, before promptly lunging forward and tackling the both of us onto the bed.

In the ensuing tickle fight that followed, I would have liked to say I won, but then I would be lying. The girl had incredibly vicious hands. After she had finished practically torturing me, we laid on the bed, and simply talked. Anything that came to mind, and Hana was very forthcoming with her answers. I learned where she went to school, what she liked there, and how her family life was like. I even learned that she and Kyou had been neighbors ever since they were children, which was why they were so comfortable with one another.

We talked late into the night, and I had fun. Perhaps this was what it felt like to finally have a friend you could trust. It was a nice feeling.

"Sinon." We were both staring up at the ceiling aimlessly, having grown tired from all the talking. "Someday... I don't know when, or how, or if it's even possible... but I want to be able to stand at the front lines. To be able to truly fight for our freedom, instead of relying on those brave few. I... want to be strong, Sinon."

There was a melancholic tone to her voice, and it was reflected in her eyes. I found myself staring into them and finding my own emotions reflected in them. I wasn't the only one who wanted to conquer my fears.

She reached out with a hand and took one of my own. "You'll be there with me, won't you?" she asked in a whisper.

"I will," I promised.

To fight at the front, to erase my fears, and to finally overcome my past... maybe it was possible after all.

* * *

We had been about an hour into the forest when we finally acknowledged we had a problem. The majority of the tenth floor consisted of forest land, and as such, many dungeon locations were incredibly well-hidden. We had been searching for one of the only dungeons in the Southern Forest in order to clear it. There were rumours that this dungeon in particular had a guaranteed prize at the end, and was fairly easy to clear.

"We're lost aren't we?" I asked with a sigh, leaning against a nearby tree. The Southern Forest was nicknamed 'The Black Forest', mostly because the trees swayed eerily, often groaning and sometimes even coming to life to attack you. It didn't help that most of the mobs in this section of the floor had the 'evil' motif going for them. Black Wolves, Black Bears, Cursed Trees, and even ethereal ghost types. Traveling through this area was definitely not something I wanted to do.

"Ahaha," the blue-haired player of our group rubbed the back of his head sheepishly. "So maybe the information we got was bad," he admitted quietly. "...Maybe that's why it was so cheap."

"Mou, you should have known better, Kyou-kun, we're lost!" The other member of the party stomped her feet before sending him a glare.

"Hey! You're the one who was drooling over the prize," he accused, narrowing his eyes as the girl poked her tongue out at him.

"That was before I knew it was all a lie!"

I sighed as the two broke into an argument once again. If I didn't know any better I would have assumed that the two were an old married couple, with how many times they argued and made up afterwards. "Guys," I cut in before they descended into a brawl. "It's going to be night soon if we don't start heading back. Maybe pick it up again when we get more info?"

They looked at each other before looking back at me, then they nodded at the same time. "Okay."

With a small smile, I started to lead us back towards the main city. It was a good thing that I had a good sense of direction, because I was sure that they would have gotten lost on the way back as well. Luckily this floor was actually rather low for our level, and it was only because of the rumour that we had bothered to venture out. Our traditional leveling grounds should be somewhere around the 20th floor.

It would have been safer leveling with a full party, and definitely more beneficial if we had a guild for support. Somehow we never thought to fully commit to either of them, despite the offers we received. There was something about being just the three of us, venturing out on our own, that made the idea of joining others unappealing.

Over the months, we had gotten far, and I could say with pride that our teamwork was nothing to scoff at. Kyou was a shield-user, and he was always ready to leap in front us when we needed it. He was reliable in that way, and with the way he doted over Hana, I didn't need to worry over her safety. As for our more rambunctious friend, she had chosen the rapier for some reason, and seemed to have grown into her role. Between the two of us, and with Kyou tanking, we could usually tackle dungeons by ourselves.

"Do you guys hear that?" Hana suddenly asked.

I strained my ears, and my senses. There were definitely noises coming from our left. "Other players?" I offered. I couldn't imagine why anyone else would be out venturing here besides us, but it was a likely answer.

"Let's check it out," Kyou answered, and we followed him with our weapons drawn. Monsters typically didn't act out, but it would be foolish to presume that they were going to be the same every time.

I brandished my weapon, the sleek black spear held in front of me as we came closer to the source of the noise. Following behind Hana, with Kyou in the lead, we settled into our typical formation. In theory, most mobs would attack him first, giving us room to retaliate with our DPS-focused builds.

We cleared the bushes and into one of the sparse clearings amidst the desolate forest. There, our eyes were treated to quite an unusual sight. I could sense the confusion coming from the other two as they came to a halt as well. It was definitely not something you could have expected to see.

Dark Elves. It was obvious from the colouring of their skin as well as the length of their pointed ears. Half a dozen of them were circling around a target—a hooded figure cloaked in red—and occasionally lashed out with their swords, seemingly testing the defense of their target. The person in the middle reflected their swings with what appeared to be a dagger, and judging from the frequency of the attacks, she was having a hard time.

"It's not a player," Kyou observed with narrowed eyes.

"What?" Hana was fidgeting, unsure of what to do. "D-do we go in?"

One of the main features about this floor was its elven theme. The main city had its own hierarchy, with a faerie elf queen at the top. To that end, almost all of the quests had something to do with the light-orientated elves. They ranged from clearing the corrupted beasts in their forests, to attacking the evil half of their race. Dark elves appeared to be an evil version of their kind, and the quests featured the war between them. The boss of this floor had been their leader, and with the clearing of the floor, the Dark Elf mobs seemed to have disappeared.

"We should," I finally chimed in, knowing that whatever it was that we stumbled upon, rescuing someone was always the better choice. I leapt into the fray.

"Sinon!"

I heard their startled shouts, but ignored them in favour of the closest dark elf. He noticed me just as I came in range, and the life-like face on the mob lit up in surprise, just before my spear glowed red and pierced him straight between the eyes. As he disintegrated, all sense of surprise evaporated, and the remaining elves shouted out what appeared to be a curse word in their language before focusing their attention onto me. Humanoid-type mobs were intelligent, and usually quite strong in combat. Their only weakness tended to be the fact that they were as weak as they appeared.

They charged forward with incredible grace and speed, and I suddenly realized that these were elite mobs. It was a good thing that I had backed up, as Kyou and Hana leapt in front of me and took some of the aggro off. Still, I had to contend with three angry elves who swung their swords with actual _skill_. My spear was used as a staff as I tried to block and parry where I could, but the sheer speed of their attacks left me with no room to counter. Just as I was about to call out for help, something happened that astounded me.

The robed figure that I had saved, sent out a bolt of fire that lanced through the chest of one of the elves, melting through his armour as if it wasn't even there. I didn't have time to be surprised however, as the remaining two elves snarled in fury. One of them began a renewed offensive against me, while the other one dived at the robed figure. It appeared that it was going to be one on one for all of us.

These mobs were vicious, and even with my level difference I felt myself having difficulties, mostly because he did not relent. My spear could not be used in such close quarters, and using a «Sword Skill» was out of the question, if I missed then I would have lost. His glowing green eyes glared down at me, and his sword continually lashed out aimed for my throat. It was a good thing then, that they had the same faults that many humans did.

"Switch!" I called out just as I came within distance of Hana. The girl gave out a cry of confirmation before we sprinted past each other at our respective opponents.

Surprise covered the dark elf's face as I came close and lunged forward with a thrust. He was not ready, and the spear lanced deep into his side causing him to hiss in pain. Utilizing the opening as best I could, I activated my strongest Sword Skill: «Severing Cross». My spear was enveloped in a red glow and with incredible speed, my spear lanced out horizontally before swinging back and slashing downwards. The afterimage of a cross was seen in the red lines across the dark elf's body. He roared in pain even as he shattered into a million pieces.

Having dealt with the elf, I turned my attention back to everyone else, and was surprised to see that they were done with their own opponents. We regrouped as we noticed the hooded figure staring at us from under its hood, only the glowing green eyes could be seen. A hesitant silence fell over the clearing, and we tensed as the figure neared us with slow steps.

"You... saved me," it began, and I could tell that it was a female elf from the soft, articulate voice. "Yet, you are humans..."

We shared a look, and I felt myself being volunteered for the job of speaking. "We are, may I ask who you are?"

The woman hesitated, but brought up her pale hands in order to pull back the hood that covered her. I heard my friends gasp as they took in her appearance, and I didn't blame them. The woman was incredibly beautiful, and it was clear that we were dealing with a high-elf, the noble class of elves. Her features were aristocratic in nature, with sharp green eyes and perfectly shaped. Coupled with her long wisps of silvery-white hair, her appearance certainly befitted one of the nobles. If not for the long, jagged scar that ran across her nose to her cheek, she might have been prettier than the Elf Queen herself.

"I am Nimmith," she introduced, and bowed lightly. I felt compelled to do the same. "Tell me, adventurers... what is it that you seek?"

There were many ways that one could have answered her question. In MMO terms, this step was crucial in order to trigger the next 'event'. I had no doubt in my mind that if I answered wrong, then she would turn us away.

I decided to answer her truthfully. "We are looking for strength."

I could tell from the incredulous stares that Hana and Kyou were not happy with my answer. Most people would have answered something like money or a weapon in hopes of receiving such a thing. It wouldn't have been out of the question too, as something like this was clearly a rare event; the rewards of such were almost always unique.

"I see..." she murmured, and there was a glimmer of something in her wizened eyes. "Then perhaps you are the ones who can help me. Adventurers, listen well. I offer you a quest unlike any other; danger and death await you, yet the reward may just be what you seek. The chance to wield the power of the gods... I ask of you, will you accept?"

The confirmation screen popped up, and I felt excitement as I scanned the contents. It was sparse, and the length as well as reward fields were filled in with question marks. This was the makings of a Legendary Quest.

"We accept."

* * *

Hana was humming and skipping as we traversed the streets of Ilsevele; the main city of the tenth floor was beautiful as always. Even in the dim orange glow of the evening, the pristine white streets still glimmered, being lit up by the well-placed lampposts. It was surprisingly busy considering the time, but the streets were filled with people, finishing their shopping or heading off to restaurants. Ever since this floor had been discovered, the main city had been established as a trading hub. It was understandable given its natural beauty, and many were eager to move out of the City of Beginnings as well.

"I can't believe it, Sinon-chan, a legendary quest!" The brown-haired girl was practically jumping for joy as we traveled towards the market area of the spiralling city.

"Not so loud, Hana," Kyou admonished. "We don't want everyone in the world to know now do we?"

I agreed, as something like this would have made headlines. We had discussed it and despite the fact that we could have shared the quest with others, we decided to keep it among us. There was something incredibly exciting about being handed a unique quest like this, and we wanted the honour of completing it by ourselves.

"What do you think the reward is?" she continued unabashed, "I hope it's like a super _super_ rare item! Then we can sell it and become millionaires!"

"A million col isn't _that _much, Hana."

"Whatever—hey, we can even buy a house!" Her eyes shined with awe. "Maybe even a castle!"

I laughed along with Kyou, both of us amused by her antics. The thought of it was rather appealing—not the castle part, but the house. We were still renting rooms in inns after all, and it was hard to declare a place home when you didn't own any of it. Having a house to call our own... it was a nice thought.

"Maybe we could also buy a dragon," Kyou added with a chuckle.

"Oi, don't laugh, I hear there are actual dragons in this game!"

As they began to bicker once more, I took the lead, and steered us to the busy part of the market, where a lot of the restaurants were located. Many of the popular restaurants were cafes, but there were a couple of them that sold gourmet food. They were very expensive of course, but it was nice to treat yourself once in awhile.

Looking up at the sign that spelled out 'Faerie Garden' in fine English letters, I jolted the two from their debate on the merits of dragon-riding, and gestured to the door. As we entered the establishment, I was immediately hit with the aroma of delicious food; it smelt like heaven. The NPC waiters were dressed to the occasion, and it felt awkward being escorted to our table and being treated with such respect.

A quick scan of the restaurant revealed that we were not alone, and that a few of the other tables were occupied with groups as well. I could hardly deduce what type of players they were, as everyone was dressed casually, but I had a feeling that they weren't the combat types. There were very few who spent their precious col on comforts rather than weapons and armour.

"Wow... they have wine?" Kyou asked dubiously, "Was that always in the game?"

"Wine flavoured," I answered, having read about this tidbit of information somewhere. "There's no effect from it of course."

He nodded in understanding. "Maybe I'll try it then, I've only ever had sake before—on new years."

"Oh, I want to try as well," Hana chimed in happily, and I could just see her legs swinging underneath the table. "You never let me have any alcohol."

"That's because it's bad for you," he answered simply.

She pouted. "That's no fair, I can have it here right?"

"Maybe."

"...Meanie!"

I hid my smile underneath the menu, and chose to scan the thing before I ended up laughing at her expense. She was really cute sometimes, despite her childish antics. The menu was filled with extravagantly worded dishes, and they appeared to have a real life counterpart but with certain SAO ingredients like Life Berries, Sweet Herbs, Ragout Sauce. Food in this game was incredibly well-designed—maybe even too well-designed, as I could even imagine the developers having several chefs under their pay roll.

After ordering our appetizers, our waiter bowed and left, while a female NPC appeared with a jar of glistening water that she helped pour. It really did feel like a five-star experience, and I told them as much.

"I know, I don't think I've ever been to anything as fancy as this in... real life." Kyou trailed off near the end, as we were all reminded of the other side. It was something that he didn't like to talk about.

Hana didn't have the same reservations. "We went to that one place in Shibuya before," she reminded him with a smile. "It was really delicious."

He nodded silently, and I got the feeling that he would rather not talk about it.

"So... how should we deal with the quest?" I asked.

They turned their curious eyes at me. "What do you mean?"

"Should we save it for later? It doesn't give us a level recommendation... though the floor is only on the 17th." I furrowed my brow, trying to remember any specifics about that floor. The quest directed us to what was likely a hidden entrance, but from what I recalled, that floor had nothing notable about it.

"I think we should finish it as soon as we can," Hana added, "We have high enough levels for it right?"

"Yea, but..." Kyou hesitated. "We should do this carefully, I really don't like the unknown aspects of the quest."

I nodded. Almost every field save the location parameter was dotted with question marks, and that was enough to make anyone wary. It was likely that the area it led to was dangerous and riddled with traps. We had a very high level advantage for the area, but that was still not enough to disregard the danger entirely.

"Should we recruit a few others?" I asked, and received a set of blinks.

"What? No way! That's our loot," Hana declared. "We can do it, Sinon."

Kyou looked unsure. "Maybe Sinon is right... it certainly wouldn't be bad to have a full party when we do this."

A few more people shouldn't be that hard to round up, especially if they found out about the uniqueness of the quest. The only issue was getting reliable people that we could work with, something that was definitely in short supply.

"We can do this guys," the brown-haired girl stated furiously. "Like everything before this, we can do it by ourselves. Right?"

I found myself nodding slowly, and Kyou did the same with an added sigh. It was decided then, we would be tackling this quest by ourselves. Hopefully, it wouldn't be too hard.

All further thoughts were tossed aside when the waiter returned with our orders.

* * *

"This is it?"

I looked over the opening of the cave dubiously, and so did my companions. This area of the floor was as remote as ever, and there was hardly anything of note. As far as the eye could see was the familiar scorched brown earth that was a trademark of this floor, and occasionally the broken down ruins of brick and mortar could be seen in various blots. There had once been a village where I stood, but now there was nothing. It wasn't so much eerie as it was impressive, as the remnants of this floor indicated a highly civilized society.

Finding a cave entrance that pointed _into_ the ground was definitely not something that appealed to me. Especially as this dungeon was definitely a hidden one, and there was no way we would have found it without the coordinates given by the quest. It was hidden in between the rubble of two buildings, and covered by dust and grime. We had to clear past a lot of the destructible rubble to reveal it.

"That doesn't look very safe..." Kyou muttered.

"It's... not that bad?" Hana tried with an unconvincing tone.

I scanned our surroundings once more before sighing. "We could still head back... this is going too fast."

We were unprepared at best, but Hana had insisted that we give it a try. This morning, when I looked at the quest, I was surprised to see that a timer had appeared under the time section. It was surprising considering that it previously had a question mark indicating unknown length of time. As for timed quests in SAO, it wasn't that uncommon, and was usually a requirement when taking on a quest for an NPC that involved taking out a certain amount of mobs.

For this quest however... with no details, it made me wary. I would have much preferred the usual text that accompanied most quests; a quest in SAO usually told you everything you needed to do, and even recommended the level of the player or party that would tackle it. For this one, we were in the dark.

"It will expire soon though..." Hana murmured, brows furrowed in thought. "And this is a one of a kind quest."

Nobody, not even some of the top information brokers had heard of anything involving a unique quest. That spoke lengths about how rare the quest was. My only real concern was the fact that we would be doing so without a full party.

"Hah... fine, let's give it a shot." Our more armoured player sighed before gesturing for us to follow. "We can always use our crystals anyway."

Though incredibly expensive, we had each managed to procure a [Teleport Crystal], and as such, I felt a small sense of relief that we had a back up to fall back on. Still, it wasn't something that was one-hundred percent. Even now, there were rumours of traps being sprung in dungeons that negated all crystals. A trap like that shouldn't be on such an early floor though.

It was in silence that we traversed into the ruins, and down into the dank tunnels. The walls were made of a material that was stone and at the same time not. Each crack in the stone walls glowed with a dim emerald light, and it pulsed ever so slowly, giving me the unique impression that somehow the place was _alive._ Shivering, I took out my weapon and was relieved to see the other two follow my example.

Soon the tunnels began to turn, and we followed the path uncertainty. It was leading us in spirals, and for several minutes I thought we were going in a loop somehow. But as we finally came upon a door, I realized that we had actually been descending. It was certainly a different theme than the floor it was held on. This particular dungeon seemed to have taken on the ancient civilization idea and ran with it.

The door was large, and filled with the markings of what I thought had to be of an unknown language. There was a pause as we shared looks. Kyou ended up in the lead, with his shield drawn, and we took up his flank. It was time to see what the dungeon had in store.

Kicking open the stone doors, it creaked open almost mechanically. For a brief moment there was darkness, and then suddenly the room flooded with light. Large pillars of pure emerald, glowing an alarming green. It bathed the room in its eerie glow, and I had to repress a shudder as it illuminated the room completely. It was enormous. The pillars spanned endlessly upwards and were separated into two neat columns. The entire room gave me a feeling of anxiety. We would be incredibly open in such a large area.

"Get ready," Kyou whispered before pressing on. Though there were no enemies that didn't mean that none would spawn. It was a common dungeon mechanic for mobs to spawn on the players in an ambush.

My observations remained truer than ever as we slowly shuffled into the room. Looking closer, I could see that the floors, the pillars, and the walls were all inscribed with the same markings on the door. What didn't bode well for us was the fact that the further we walked in, the more that the markings began to glow. It was obvious that our presence in the room was doing something.

"There!"

I looked to our left, and spotted the thing immediately, it cracked open the floors of the place and crawled out, giving me a first look at what our enemies would be. It was... a machine, or rather, more machine than man. It had wires connecting its silver-coloured limbs, and had a mechanical helmet for a head. What a unique looking mob... I didn't have any more time to ponder as suddenly it leapt forward.

Our sturdiest player met the charge instantly, and the thing crashed savagely into his shield. The blue-haired shield-user grunted before pushing back the mob, and made room as the thing stumbled. That was our cue, and without further thought we jumped in with our weapons swinging, a sword skill at our fingertips. Twin lights of blue stabbed and sliced into the mob respectively, and it gave a metallic groan before it exploded into light.

I sighed in relief. It was clear that the mob was around the same levels of those found around this floor. If this held true the rest of the way then it looked like the quest was doable.

"Now that wasn't so bad?"

"Yea."

We shared a small smile, and began to press on. "Oh... crap."

Following Hana's wide-eyed stare, I turned only to find a sea of red dots gazing back at me. Each one indicated the eyes of the very same mob we had just taken down. The number of them gave us pause, and I wondered if we were in trouble.

"Keep your backs open! Don't let them surround us!" Kyou shouted before going in and taking the brunt of the aggro.

It was a solid plan, and we carefully kept note of our surroundings as we began to attack the mechanical creatures. It was truly a literal sea of them as they swarmed against us, and it was only the fact that they died in one or two hits that made it even remotely possible to fight back. Yet, their sheer numbers would have overwhelmed us if not for the fact that we were constantly moving and making sure we were not surrounded. In that manner we could pick off the few that came close enough while still having room to move back.

For several long minutes there was only the sound of us fighting against the robotic tide. Kyou had even used his emergency healing crystal as his HP went down into the low yellows. He was doing his best at drawing their attention, giving us perfect opportunities to thin the crowd. I reserved my sword skills for the most part, not wanting to risk the chance of getting swarmed while locked in the animation. Their weakness was the head, and a single spear thrust through their forehead was all it took. The sound of breaking glass, and our shouts of exertion were the only things heard in the chamber.

With one last spin, I cleaved through one straggler before twirling and stabbing my spear through the head of the last mob. It gave a gurgled sound of grinding gears before it shattered into light. At last, we had cleared the room.

"Everybody alright?" Kyou asked tiredly, resting his head against a pillar. Hana was crouching as well. That had been a long fight.

"That was close," I murmured, eyeing our HP bars. We had all fallen below half, even with Kyou taking the large majority of the aggro.

"We got them though!" Hana exclaimed cheerfully, and began to sip at a healing potion. Watching her reminded me, and I did the same with my own potion. It was always best to top off your HP whenever you could in a game like this.

As much as I felt prideful at having fought off the swarm of machines, my confidence still wavered. "Should we continue?" I asked slowly, not quite meeting their eyes.

"Well... at least we know its doable now, right?" The blue-haired boy rubbed at his chin thoughtfully. "We could go back and gather some more help?"

I opened up my quest menu before looking back and shaking my head. "Even if we teleport out, I doubt we could come back and finish within two hours." The walking time alone would take a third of that.

"Damn..." he muttered.

"I say we still go," Hana said and dusted off her pants as she got up. "We still have our crystals right? Let's give it a shot."

Still with the same exuberance, I noted with a wry smile. "Alright," I agreed, and Kyou nodded mutely.

With that settled, we began to march forward once more, and as expected, we encountered much more of the machine swarm. It was easier now that we knew what to expect, but it was still tedious all the same. As we fought through the mobs, I began to realize just how effective our teamwork was.

Not a lot of players in SAO could say that. Teamwork in this game was crucial, yet not many bothered to learn past basic switching tactics. It was somewhat understandable, given that trusting another person with your life was not the best idea. It was this mentality that followed the players that went out and formed parties. To fight together was for the safety of all, but it was clear that at the end of the day, they were always going to put themselves first.

Our group didn't have this problem. I would be lying if I said I didn't have any issues with trusting the two, especially on the first few days we ventured out. But as I grew to understand the two of them, I realized just how unique they were. They trusted completely, not doubting for a second that the others would guard their back or come for them when they got into trouble. Even Kyou, our shield user, never faltered in the face of danger even when his HP was typically the lowest. Friends like these... teammates... they were rare.

I found myself smiling as we cleared through the mobs, side by side, and without a doubt in our minds. Soon enough, we were alone once more.

"Oh man... I'm not sure if I can take anymore of this," Hana moaned, clutching at her side.

Kyou huffed from beside her. "You're the one who wanted to go on, idiot."

"What did you just say, you blue-haired... clown!"

I sighed as the two began to bicker again. Really, if they could remain serious at least in the middle of a dangerous dungeon, than they would have been the perfect party members. Even then, I regarded them with a fond smile. It was their way of lowering all of the fear and anxiety that everyone felt in this death game.

Looking past the arguing 'non' couple, I spotted something that caused me to blink. It seemed that we were closer to the goal than I had thought. In the quest text, the only thing that was not a series of question marks was the goal, but even then it was as bare as possible. It was a single sentence: 'retrieve the token of Hecate'. And the altar that was pressed up against the walls of this vast chamber was definitely it.

"Guys... I think that's it," I cut into their argument and pointed to the lit altar. "That thing must be the token."

It was between two thin pillars, and decorated in black and gold. Atop of the altar held several ornate bowls and what looked to be a necklace secured on a stand. The necklace was what we needed, judging by its untarnished appearance.

"That's it?" Hana asked in disappointment. "No boss? No treasure? No nothing?" I could sense the pout in her voice without even looking at her.

"Well, I'd much rather prefer this than a boss... anyway, take it and lets get out of this creepy place, Sinon."

I walked up slowly, and with caution, careful not to trigger any traps along the way. To my surprise, nothing happened as I stepped up to the stone altar and picked up the necklace. I gave it a reflexive scan with the appraisal skill, but was not surprised to see all of the information blanked out. Only the name of the item indicated that it was the correct one. Just as I was about to turn back, there was a -click- sound that sent a jolt down my spine. It happened the moment I put the necklace in my inventory.

"What—"

The grinding picked up, and it was a terrible sound as the walls began to _screech_ with the force of the grinding. The markings on the walls were now lit, fully illuminating the room into a bright amalgamation of blue and green. We bunched together, preparing for whatever was coming, each of us tense. I knew it was too easy to be true, and I silently cursed myself for picking up the thing so casually. This was supposed to be a unique quest.

I had been foolish.

At last, the horrifying grinding came to a halt, but in its place was something far, far worse. A chorus of voices... each and every one of them inhuman. Guttural mechanical roars that echoed through every part of the chamber.

It was coming from above.

I heard the gasp of surprise from Hana, and I froze at the sight that loomed over us. In the impossibly tall chamber walls, surrounding us from every side and even from the pillars themselves were the tell-tale glows of their eyes. This time however, there was no stopping the rush of fear from enveloping me. There were enough glowing red eyes in the darkness to fill every spot I could see... and they were all climbing down towards us.

"Run!" Kyou suddenly shouted, and jolted me out of my stupor. He took Hana's hand and began to run for it. I quickly followed, knowing that our chances were zero against such numbers. It was no longer a swarm of machines.

It was an entire legion.

We ran as fast we could, but the span of the chamber was incredible. As we reached half way across the length of the room, the first few of them began to arrive. I ducked and dodged where I could, and tried to maneuver towards the door. We all had the same instinct; get to the door and hope we could make it out.

It was endless, the number of them that surrounded us was too many to count, and before we knew it we were surrounded. Fighting them off as they circled around us, and it was only the fact that we had a pillar to our back that prevented all of them from jumping at us. Yet the fury of their onslaughts was unlike before, and even without looking at our HP bars I could tell that we were in trouble.

"Crystals!" I shouted desperately, and stabbed through two of them at once with a quick «Pierce». I recovered quickly, and shouted at Hana, "You go first!"

The girl hesitated, but obeyed and brought out the [Teleport Crystal] from within her quick slot. Her eyes widened as she peered down at the crystal. "It's... disabled!" her panicked voice shouted over the roar of the machines.

_Disabled_. I felt fear grip my heart at her declaration. From the beginning, we always had a way out. Teleport Crystals were the life jackets of all players trapped in this death game. It was supposed to be infallible, the one thing that you could always count on.

And it was disabled.

"Sinon!" A shout startled me, and I ducked under a punch from a mob that loomed over me. Hana jabbed her rapier straight through its throat, and the mechanical monstrosity exploded. She grabbed my hand and we got up just in time to take down another wave of monsters.

My hands were shaking, I suddenly realized even as I took down two more. This fear that gripped me... it was familiar. It was the same feeling I had all those years ago, when I had came so close to death. What I had did back then had damaged me, and now I was feeling its effects. I could barely wield my spear, and had to rely on a few sword skills to guide my shaking hands. It was inevitable.

We were going to die. There was no way out now, with crystal activations down, and no end in sight. Our HP would run out before we even made a dent in the approaching legions. We were only surviving right now due to our sporadic use of AOE sword skills while the others covered for you. Eventually one of us would falter.

"Sinon." Hana's voice was firm and her pose was not one of nervousness. The brown-haired girl looked almost resolute as she took down mob after mob. "Listen to me, Sinon!"

I didn't understand, why was she so calm? Didn't she understand that we were all going to die?

"Kyou!" she suddenly shouted, and the blue-haired boy locked gazes with her for a split second. "You know what we have to do!"

There was something in his eyes, and it flashed by almost too fast for me to catch. It was fear... and regret, tinged with agony.

"I got it, Hana!" he agreed, and shoved back the wave with a bash of his shield. "Lets do this!"

"We're gonna get you out, Sinon!" Hana shouted, and despite the fact that I was almost useless, she dragged me by the hand and followed the steps of Kyou.

The shield-user was clearing a path. It was with a copious usage of shield bashes and application of strength rather than using sword skills. Slowly, but surely he managed to make a path through the army of mobs. We followed the path as best we could, ducking and dodging past the mobs that tried to grab at us. The relative safety of the pillar against our back was lost, and we were now surrounded on all sides.

"Sinon..." In the cacophony of noise, hers was the loudest. Her tone was serious, and there was no trace of the carefree girl that I had always known her as. "I really really liked spending time with you, Sinon! You're a great friend—my best friend!" She stopped and had to step in to help Kyou as the mobs began to overwhelm him. "And... I know you'll be great—so clear this game for both of us, Sinon... and _LIVE!_"

"NOW!" With that shout, Kyou activated one of his few AoE sword skills, and his sword glowed a brilliant red as he stabbed downwards. At the moment of impact with the ground, a shock wave was released and it sent a ripple of force around them, sending the swarm staggering back.

One moment I was staring at him in shock, the next I felt both of my hands gripped. Staring into the smiling eyes of Hana, she gave me a sad smile before she _threw _me. I couldn't even react as I was sent soaring over the army of mobs. She launched me far, I realized, and my landing was rough as I rolled across the ground. Dimly, I realized that I had reached the door, but my attention was held elsewhere.

In the midst of mechanical howls and angry roars, my two closest friends were trapped. I reached out my hand, trying to _think_ to _do something_, anything in order to save them.

But it was for naught.

I watched on as they were erased from this world, having sacrificed themselves for me.

* * *

_Death changes a person. Rewrites their entire perception of reality. Some are lucky, they never experience it until very late into their lives, and the most exposure they would receive would be from the news reports and papers. Perhaps they would read about a tragic accident on the highway and shake their heads in sadness, wondering why terrible things happened to good people. Of course, they would promptly forget about it soon enough. Death is still just a concept to them after all._

_When Shino was young, too young to remember, she lost her father. It was an accident of course, one of negligence and stupidity, but an accident nonetheless. The drunk driver rammed into their minivan from the side with all the force a speeding sports car could provide. But a car going double the speed limit hitting a van from the side... it was a wonder that there could be any survivors. She lived, and so did her mother. Her father died on impact, and they were in the hospital for weeks. It wasn't a comfort to hear that the drunk driver had also died. _

_Maybe it was all in her mind, but she could distinctly remember a time where her mother looked down at her with a smile—a true, blinding white smile—and could 'see' her. Sometimes she thought that it was just a dream, because the woman she was used to rarely ever saw her. Her mother was distant, eyes always looking far off into the distance—peering into nothing, or maybe the past. Sometimes, her eyes looked at her with complete surprise, as if just noticing that she had a daughter. It always saddened her, to see the bewilderment in her mother's eyes. But sometimes... rare though the moments might be, her mother truly cared for her, truly... loved her. Tucking her into bed, singing for her, reading books to pass the time, and her laughter; so gentle and full of warmth... full of love. Shino wanted to protect her mother, because she loved her, and she knew that her mother loved her too, even if she was damaged._

_Death changes things._

_When her hands, clenched around the cursed steel, pulled the trigger, she lost something. The childhood innocence that all children had, she did not lose that. The colourful world that enveloped every child until they realized what reality was... she did not lose that. Those were things that she never really had, because she had to grow up, and not for her own sake. The thing that she lost, was her mother's warmth. _

_Her mother was gentle, though absent-minded, but her eyes had held __only __warmth and love for her. Some part of her could always recognize that the little brown-haired girl that looked so much like her... was her dearest child. _

_Fear, unlike anything she had ever seen, was reflected in her __mother's __eyes. Not fear at the situation, or fear of what she had done, but pure, genuine_ _fear of _**her**. _It hurt... it had hurt more than anything in the world, to see her mother stare at her like that. To have caused her so much pain._

_So she left._

_Shino was a girl brought up in misfortune. She did not deserve the hand she was dealt, yet, she was not one to wallow in self-pity. She was a realist, a survivor... and a sad, lonely girl. She should have realized what came out of befriending others. _

_She didn't learn._

_It __only __hurt that much more when she was alone again._

_Somewhere... in a distant part of her, she recalled a memory. It was vague, hazy, and distorted. But she recalled a shining light and warmth that had enveloped her so fully... that, for a moment, she felt __protected_...

'_Foolish', she thought in the dim of her thoughts... there was no light for someone like her._

* * *

It was dark.

The howling of the wind was the first thing she noticed as she awakened, followed by the faint crackling of... a fire. Her eyes squinted in the dark, bleary and dazed. She could hardly recall how she had ended up here. She vaguely remembered snow, endless white torrents that blocked out anything and everything. She had been moving... away from something. And then... she slipped.

Suddenly, she jolted up as she was reminded of her descent. That moment when she had finally succame to the grip of virtual gravity... she had accepted her fate. She had had a vague idea of where she was when she had fallen, and had known that there was no way she would have survived the drop—even with the snow breaking her fall. So then... how was she alive?

"You're awake."

Sinon had to bite back a scream as the soft voice brought her out of her reverie. Her head snapped towards the source of the noise and found a figure by the fire. He was seated rather calmly, hands warming themselves before the camp fire. He had short black hair and a even more startling shade of dark eyes. He wore a rather intricate ensemble; a leather outfit coloured primarily in black, yet trimmed with royal gold. She knew him.

"Y-you..." she stuttered, almost frozen in shock. He was the last person she would have imagined saving her. Not because he wasn't capable, because surely enough he was the only person in this game that knew who she was. No, she could not imagine him rescuing her because she simply did not believe that anyone could possibly want to save her.

"That was a close call," he remarked almost casually, he was staring out at the fury of the snow storm. "My HP was quite low when we finally hit the ground. You're quite heavy you know?"

If Sinon noticed his quip, she didn't show it. Her stare was intense as she followed his every move, as if just truly seeing him for the first time.

"Really though, you should have known better, that area is treacherous during high weather settings." Kirito got up, and dusted off the snow that had settled on his person. The cave they were in was a godsend, considering just how harried the weather had become. It wasn't like they were going to freeze at any rate, but you could still feel the biting cold as it dug into your skin. "Are you alright?" he asked quietly, stopping a short distance before the hooded girl.

It was incomprehensible to her. The boy that she had constantly scorned and ignored, the one whose attempts at befriending her she turned down at every opportunity. She hadn't wanted his friendship, did not want his companionship despite however lonely she was. It wasn't worth it, to open yourself up again only to be burned. Yet...

"Oi, Sinon, are you okay?" his concerned voice washed over her, and she felt an unknown emotion grip her.

"Why..." she whispered hollowly, barely audible at first. She gazed into his expressive black eyes; they were full of concern for _her._ "Why did you do that?" she asked harshly, and didn't relent even as he took a step back in shock. "Why!? For someone like me!?"

It would have been better if she had died. All her life, she tried for a semblance of happiness, yet could never achieve it. Normality, a life where she could finally be at peace with herself and everyone around her. It was not to be. One accident after another, ever since she received that damned NerveGear. She should have known better than to try and break out from her bleak life-style. It was as if she wasn't supposed to have happiness.

"Why?" Kirito murmured back, his brow furrowed in thought. "Because you were in danger, Sinon."

Such a simple response... it only infuriated her more. "You idiot!" she shouted, eyes burning with unshed tears. "Don't you understand? I didn't _want_ to be saved! I... I didn't _need _to be rescued!"

Kirito opened his mouth as if to speak, but stopped. What was he supposed to say to that? To a girl who would have apparently preferred if she had plummeted to her death. "_Why?_" It was his turn to ask now, and his question caused her to turn her head.

She looked away from his piercing eyes, and into the camp fire. The only source of light bathed the two in its orange glow, yet she felt no warmth. His question was fair, she owed him that much. Then, there was the question of actually going about answering. It wouldn't have made sense to a great many—her reasons were a consequence of her past. And to talk about her past... would be opening a door that she had never opened before.

To finally confide in someone.

"...In the past, there was a happy little girl, and a sad young woman." Her eyes were closed as she spoke, not wanting to see his puzzled gaze as she began to recall. "The older woman was the girl's mother... but she wasn't quite all there. She had lost her husband early in her life, and she never really recovered from that. Growing up, the girl didn't have much, but she was happy. Happy because she had a mom who loved her, happy to have a family to call her own. Her mother was fragile, too _hurt_ to truly be there for her. So, the little girl thought to herself, that she should protect her mother, to do everything in her power to be there for her."

Not really knowing why, Sinon recounted to her saviour her sordid past. How her mother was _damaged_, how she could hardly work much less take care of the two of them. So Shino instead took it upon herself to cook, clean and do her best to make their house tidy and presentable, all so that her mother wouldn't have to. In time, her mother got better, she smiled a lot more, and played with her almost every day. For a time, she would come home everyday to a smile and a kiss. For a time, she had a perfect home; a place full of warmth.

Then it happened.

It wasn't supposed to happen, she told him absently. They were supposed to be playing at the park that day, but one of their neighbours had requested a favour from her mother; to drop off a letter at the post-office on the way. Her mother should never have been there, and subsequently should never have met that _man_. She described the intense feeling of fear that had gripped her the moment she began to realize what was happening. A man, hopped on god knows how many drugs, was trying to rob the post-office.

He hurt her mother. That moment, when he had threatened to kill her mother, she lost all feeling. One moment, she was scared, trembling with fear, and the next, she was holding his gun. The trigger was heavy, but she did it. She killed the man who had threatened her mother. Yet... the look of pure fear and revulsion that she received, from her own _mother_. That was the most terrifying thing of all.

She told him about the police, how incessant their questioning was. How did she get the gun? Did he give it to her? Why did she shoot? They asked as if she wasn't simply a scared little girl. In truth, she recalled very little of what had happened, too caught up in the memory of her mother's horrified expression. It wasn't until the police chief personally came in and scolded the two officers that she was finally rushed to the hospital. They poked and prodded, likely trying to find out the cause of why she was so pale.

Her mother flinched the next time she saw her. Sinon would never forget the way her mother tensed at the sight of her, and she knew instantly what her mother saw in that scant moment. She did not see her daughter, she saw a murderer.

She told him about the therapy, about how the psychiatrists tried to get her to expand on her feelings. They told her that talking would help, that confiding in them would help her move on. They didn't understand, couldn't even begin to. They were not the ones with blood on their hands.

She told him about her school, about her small town. Kids were always the cruelest, their eyes followed her every move as if she was on display. The adults were almost worse in a way, they offered comfort and support, but she could see the way their eyes looked at her. Pitiful. For a little girl not even in middle school to be labeled as a murderer by her peers... she did not have the best of times.

She told him about moving, about striving for a way to move beyond her past. In the city she was granted her wish, and she was left alone. Just another lonely girl in a sea of others. And then, she had done something incredibly out of place for her. She had applied for the «Sword Art Online» beta. In hindsight, she was truly looking for something, _anything_ to dull the monotony of everyday life.

What she had found however, was so much better. For a time, she had been _happy_. In a virtual world where she could become someone else, where her past did not haunt her, she was free. Too good to be true. Her happiness did not last long, and the beta became but a fleeting memory to her, forever tainted by the brutality of the present death game.

And then, she told him about Hana and Kyou. The two closest friends she had ever made. For a time, she had been content. They were truly the kindest of people, never prying and doing their best to make her smile or laugh. It was never pity in their eyes when they looked at her, only fondness. Somehow, she knew that even had they known about her past, they wouldn't have cared one bit, only offered further support. The mere memory of the two pained her immensely.

Their deaths were so utterly pointless.

To have sacrificed themselves for her, to what end? Even now she was as weak as ever, not even able to fulfill the promise she had made to Hana. To reach the front lines and to clear this game. To finally become strong enough to face _all_ of her fears. She couldn't do that... especially not now.

Kirito listened to all of it without a single sound, yet his eyes never left her. She was telling him _everything_, every little bit that she held inside of her, she poured out to the black-haired boy in front of her. The door that held her past was bared, and she left nothing out. Sadness, anger, grief. Emotions that she had suppressed all these years finally set free. She was crying without even noticing it.

It was quiet when she finished, and not because of the fact that the fire was starting to die out and that the storm was coming to a close. No, the silence that permeated the air went beyond that.

"Let me tell you a story, Sinon." His voice broke the silence, yet it was with a softness that made her look up. "Once, there was a little boy, and his mother. You see, the mother was going to a business conference and the boy wanted to go—insisted even—and his mother was hardly one to refuse him, especially knowing how little time she had spent with him lately. On the way, they passed by many towns as they took the scenic route, enjoying the week-long trip together. On the way, they passed—"

Her eyes widened as he spoke the name of her town.

"—and stopped by the local post-office on a random monday. The mother had to mail off some important documents to the corporate office, you see. She said it wouldn't take that long, but the little boy came along anyway. Inside the post-office, he saw a little girl with brown hair in cute little ribbons. You know, he really wanted to talk to her for some reason."

Her heart was pounding, and she didn't know why. His words were insane, and yet she found herself believing him. There was nothing but sincerity in his voice.

"Before I could, a man showed up with a gun. I remember vividly, the screams and shouts as he made his demands. My mother had pushed me to the ground, shielding me with her body almost immediately. I was scared, and so was she. Yet, out of everyone in that building that could have done something... it was a little girl that saved us. She pulled the trigger... not to murder a man, but to save lives. She was a hero." Kirito knelt down so that he could look directly into her eyes. "On that day, a little girl saved me and my mother. The saddest thing of all was how _scared_ she was. Probably, she was the most frightened person in the whole building, yet... no one did a thing. So, I got up from underneath my mother and..."

He embraced her, his arms wrapping around her small form. She was cold to the touch, but he was warm. "I hugged her tightly," he whispered into her ears, and did not relent his hold even as she began to tremble. "Do you remember... Sinon?"

She remembered.

A warmth that had surrounded her, blocked out all of her fear and pain. It was someone, a person, and now she knew who it was. It had been that little boy who had walked in with his mother, the dark-haired boy who she had wondered to herself if he would have liked to play with her. A little boy that was now in front of her. "You..." she sobbed, and suddenly she wrapped her own arms around him. "You're... the boy."

The boy who had stayed with her, giving her comfort when nobody else bothered. She had drawn into herself, and could hardly remember anything that had happened after she had shot that man. The memory that had stayed with her... was the loss of warmth. This was the memory she had forgotten.

"I wanted to stay," he told her softly, "but they wouldn't give us any information, and said that it was for your own protection." It wasn't an excuse, he should have tried harder. "I'm sorry, Sinon."

She choked out a laugh in between her sobs. Apologizing... even now? He was truly something else. As she rested contently in his hold, she finally realized that even after all this time, she still remembered the warmth. To have someone embrace her, to give her that sense of comfort and safety that she had been denied... it was cathartic.

It was several minutes later that she had finally dried her tears so to speak, there were no traces of them on her face—this was virtual reality after all. It was truly a wonder, to be here in the arms of a boy from her torrid past, and to feel so utterly _safe_.

"We should get back soon," he suddenly murmured.

"Back?" she asked, her voice muffled into his shirt.

"Back home," he told her, "you're coming too of course."

_Home_... that was almost a foreign concept to her.

"We haven't properly introduced ourselves have we?" he mused as he fumbled with his inventory. He softly pried the exhausted girl off of his chest, and took her hand in his. The teleport crystal he gave her was one of the custom ones that was keyed directly to his home. "My name is Kirigaya Kazuto, what's yours?"

Staring into the eyes of the boy who had saved her, who had given her so much, she felt herself smiling.

"Asada Shino."

* * *

**Author's Note: **The end.

Well, now that took a while. Sorry for the long update time everyone, I was quite distracted by other things, like making a SAO rpg of all things.

This chapter is entirely Sinon's backstory, leading up to the reveal that Kirito had been there in her past. Originally I wasn't going to have their pasts interconnect, but I found that it would work rather nicely in this story. Kirito, who was saved by a scared little girl, would surely have become more 'serious' in his manner, and surely less caring of downplaying himself for the sake of others. Sinon as a character is unique. She is an incredibly strong girl, trying to move on by her own strength alone. However, I feel that in the end, all she really wanted was a true friend to rely on.

Hopefully I portrayed her well. This does lead into the fact that she is now the girl with the most development, something which I need to remedy with the other girls. Another reviewer also pointed out how little 'real' romance there are with the other girls, and that's also something I need to remedy.

Anyway, please tell me what you thought of the chapter, and do feel free to start a discussion on the forums if you would want to talk about Sinon some more or on what the future chapters should emphasize. The next chapter should be much faster than this, I give anyone free permission to nag me on the forums for updates.

A big thanks to my beta, n0mster for his awesome work.

See you all next time!

**SAO fic recommendation of the day:**

**Dual Blades » by Nanospeeed**

-The basic premise is on the synergy between Kirito and Asuna. Even from the first boss battle, they showed amazing teamwork. So what if they teamed up from the start? Asuna could be quite the influence on Kirito, and vice versa.

-Of course, it is an AU, and the author has added some pretty interesting things to the world, such as time dilation, and actual pain—you can feel every sensation as if it were real. Along with a bigger population of players, and the author taking his time with the setup, it's definitely a new take on the SAO that we love rather than a rehash.

-Do check it out, and nag the author for me, we need more of fics like this.

-=BGM=- (Testing purposes, ignore)

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